Trapped
by copperdragon 2
Summary: The Doctor and Clara find themselves in a world of blocks, weird creatures, monsters, gamers, and a figure that has remained in the shadows for many years…until now. (Rated T just in case, I don't own DW or minecraft, sadly) Please review and enjoy!
1. Chapter 1

**This is just going to be a long shot! Please read, review, and enjoy! Let me know if you want this series to go on.**

"So Doctor, where are we off to now?" Clara said as she walked around the Tardis console while her busy Doctor was pushing buttons and pulling levers, setting the coordinates for their next adventure.

"There's a festival on a distant planet called Atier." He began, "Never been, heard it's fantastic with singing, dancing, and a coliseum with giant dogs that the people ride." The Doctor said with glee, gesturing wildly with his hands.

"Giant dogs?" Clara chuckled as she imagined the enormous hounds trying to play fetch with a tree while their owners hauled out huge treats for the pup's reward. "Sounds like fun."

"I knew you'd like the idea." The Doctor laughed as he pulled the final lever to take off, but was soon caught by surprise when the time machine shook violently and thrashed around. The Tardis groaned in protest as she took off, throwing the two passengers around like rag dolls. Alarms began to blare and warning lights flickered as some sparks erupted from the console.

Clara clung to one of the railings for dear life as the Doctor frantically tried to reset the directions but found that useless as he was tossed across the room, eventually banging his head into the side of a wall on accident.

"Doctor! What's going on?" Clara shouted above the alarms and noises. She tried to steady herself on the Tardis' shaking foundations as the time machine was thrown into chaos.

"The Tardis is being pulled off course, just hang on!" The Doctor shouted back as got up and began to make his way to the console again. But as soon as the hysterical eruption of alarms and panic happened, it had come to an end. The Tardis shook to a grinding halt and the lights began to dim as the room was slowly thrown into darkness as if a black cloak was hanging over them.

"No no no no NO!" The Doctor shouted in clear frustration as the room soon became pitch black, "Don't do this now. Come on!"

"What's wrong?" Clara said wearily as she gingerly tested her throbbing shoulder and stood up. She felt her way along the railing to the console where she could just barely see the Doctor's outline in the dark. "Where've we landed?"

The Doctor ran a hand through his hair, looking at what must have been Clara in the blackness with genuine concern on his face. "The Tardis was pulled deliberately off course and has shut herself down to protect the power supply. Whoever yanked us from our spot has lots of power."

"Can we at least check where we are?" Clara said, making her way to the door by feeling around.

"The systems are all down so there's no other choice." The Doctor pushed more buttons and gadgets on the console in one last attempt to get _something_ running. Defeated, he walked towards the door and put his hand on it, preparing for the worst. "As soon as we leave these doors, the Tardis will be locked for a long period of time. Are you sure you want to go outside?" He asked.

Clara hesitated slightly but soon replied with a simple, "Yeah."

Without another word, he opened the door to find grassland that stretched out before them, dotted with flowers and a forest sitting on the edges. But that wasn't what caught their attention first.

"It's...blocks." Clara said in confusion. She sighed in relief that they weren't confronted by hostile beings from another world or any other dangers that could have easily been outside the Tardis doors, but the terrain before them left Clara flabbergasted.

However, the Doctor was more enthusiastic and jumped out of the doorway, beginning to scan the area with his sonic screwdriver.

"Oh my god, Doctor! What's happened to you?" Clara stepped out of the Tardis to see her friend composed of some sort of a rectangular form, "Oh my god, what's happened to me?" She said in shock as she noticed the block form of herself, turning around in circles and taking in every detail of her new shape.

The Doctor looked down for a moment, noticing the form in delighted surprise. "Ah! Well, that is weird. Sort of that pleasant weird you get like you're not entirely sure how to feel about it." He skimmed over the readings on his sonic and wore a mixed expression of worry, interest, and bewilderment.

"Doctor, what is it...? Where've we landed?" Clara asked as she 'walked' over to the Doctor, who was still gaping at the readings.

"It can't be…" He hit the sonic against his palm and read the readings again, "Impossible!"

"What is it?" Clara was getting more flustered as she waited for an answer.

"Okay, Clara…" He finally said after a few more seconds, walking over to Clara and looking her straight in the eye, he said, "The sonic identified the surrounding area of coded and encrypted origin, everything's programmed and set to a random order of a spawn point, and no trace of any organic planetary substances…"

"Which means…?" Clara implied, not quite catching what her friend was rambling on about.

"We're in a game!"

**Like I said, let me know if you want this to continue…**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hello! Sorry for the really really loooong wait. I've been currently juggling school, another story, and family stuff. Here's chapter 2, enjoy :D**

"We're in a game...?" Clara stated for reassurance. She didn't know if the Doctor had finally lost his mind to hundreds of years through time and space, but then again...this wouldn't be the first time they've run into something impossible either. After careful speculation of the area around them, it dawned on her, "Doctor, I've seen this place before."

"Where have you seen it?" He inquired as he inspected the ground beneath their feet and grabbed a handful of the soil, letting minuscule blocks of dirt trickle from his blocky hand as it fell to back to the ground.

"I remember seeing Artie play it on his computer. He couldn't get enough of it." She remembered trying to get him off of the game when he was supposed to be in bed, 'One more block please miss Clara?' he pleaded as he continued to stare at the computer screen. Clara tried remembering the name of the game, but the more she tried to grasp it, the less she could remember.

"Well, that would explain a lot, but yes." The Doctor said, spinning around and taking in the landscape with childish glee. "The whole place is a computer game. A spawn, programming, pixels, and everything! And apparently…blocky." Fiddling with his screwdriver, he activated it on him and Clara, as they soon took to their usual real-world shape. "Better." He said, satisfied to look normal.

"What was that?" Clara asked as she twisted and turned her body to see it all restored to its previous dimensions.

"I changed the coding and encrypted us with a perception filter so we can look like our normal selves, at least to each other." His voice drifted off as he inspected the readings on the screwdriver again with a concentrated look.

"What is it?" Clara said as she walked over to the Doctor, relieved that she could move the correct way again.

The Doctor looked up at her, "We're not the only ones here." As if on cue, they heard shouting and whooping come from over one of the hills. Clara squinted her eyes trying to get a glimpse of where the noise was coming from that was gradually getting louder and louder until she saw three individual figures riding on something she couldn't make out as they made their way straight for them.

"Um…Doctor…" Clara said nervously, pulling his attention away from his readings.

The Doctor's eyes widened and he yelled, "Get out of the way!" they both dove to the side as the 'players' rushed past them on what looked to be horses.

Clara stood back up and dusted herself off, "Why didn't they see us?" she looked behind her as the players rode off in the opposite direction.

"We seem to not be officially part of this program, meaning no players can take notice of us unless we make ourselves known…just like the perception filter I put on us if you think about it."

"What, like the Tardis?" Clara looked back at the Doctor as he looked around some more and rushed over to a tree.

"Sort of, yes, if that helps." The Doctor was inspecting the tree closely, "Let's check out this game then shall we? I love video games…" Without warning, he slammed his fist into the tree, causing the particular section to shrink into an individual cube that hovered over the spot in between the base and the remaining top.

"You see!" The Doctor grinned and snatched the cube and held it out to Clara, "Gravity doesn't work in these temporal zones along with many others," He pulled out his sonic and read the readings one more time, "except for sand, gravel, water, and lava."

"And how did you know to punch the tree?" Clara leaned against what looked like a birch tree next to the Doctor with a bemused expression playing on her features.

"Just a random guess…" He suddenly jumped in a startle and yelped in pain, shaking the hand that he punched the tree with.

"Are you alright?" Clara said anxiously as she moved over to help.

"We're not originally of the game, not to mention we just got here." He cradled his hand tried to soothe it, "Meaning, anything we do that should cause pain in our reality will cause pain here; and because the game isn't programmed to inflict that on the players, the pain will be delayed for awhile." He inspected his hand as it slowly began to show signs of scrapes and bruises on his knuckles.

"So, note to self: don't punch trees." Clara couldn't help but find it amusing that the Doctor didn't notice that before. She stepped out of the grove of trees and looked out in the distance.

"What's that?" Clara pointed out to a far away set of structures that barely stood out against the horizon. The Doctor walked up next to her and squinted to get a better look, "Looks like a settlement, let's go take a look." Without waiting for Clara, he began to walk at a brisk pace towards the structures.

"Hey wait up!" Clara dashed toward the Doctor as they both headed toward civilization, not noticing the figure behind them fade back into the shadows of the forest.

**Okay, I know. Really short chapter, but I promise I'll update sooner and the chapters won't be so short. Leave a review and check out my profile :)**


	3. Chapter 3

**I assure to you guys that I am still alive! Sorry for the super long wait, I had a major traffic jam in school and other writing projects! So now that I'm done with those, I plan to update sooner and (hopefully) have longer chapters! So, I've got Minecraft parodies goin' on in the background and a big soda to keep me on...let's see how this goes! Please enjoy and don't forget to R/R**

By the time the weary travelers had arrived at the village, Clara's legs felt as if they were about to fall off. The Doctor crouched down next to her, panting heavily saying, "I think…we made it." He gave a small and unenthusiastic 'woo-hoo', nearly collapsing on the spot.

Clara sat down on the surprisingly chilly grass to catch her breath from the exhausting walk. She looked out over the hills they had previously climbed and sighed in satisfaction of their accomplished hard work. She hadn't realized at first how simple yet beautiful the landscape became as it got closer to dark.

The now nearly faded mountains took on a cooled shade of gray with its snow-capped peaks, the clouds were a bright orange as the final glints of sunlight lit them aflame, and a sliver of the moon was just appearing on the opposite side of the horizon. At any moment, Clara expected crickets to chirp their familiar tune from the darkened grasses that surrounded them, but was disappointed when none came.

A few minutes passed on and soon the Doctor came over, helping Clara back to her feet saying, "Come on, it's getting dark." Clara didn't want to move from the secluded spot. It was nice; the view of the forests and peaks of the mountains beyond seemed to soothe her. "What's wrong with the dark?" The Doctor smiled and muttered quietly, "I don't really want to hang around to find out." Reluctantly, Clara moved away and entered into the village, casting one last look over her shoulder to see the sun finally set.

When they had seen the village from a distance, the buildings and structures looked sound and peaceful; but now that they were up close, the place looked ransacked and abandoned. Houses were missing most of their structure and the small plantations were a mess with most of the crop either destroyed or gone.

"What a mess. Is this how the villages are supposed to be set up?" Clara asked as she inspected a house that was more rubble than a proper structure.

"No, I'm sure this was done by one of the players most likely-" He was interrupted by a loud and high-pitched screech that made them both cover their ears and whip around. What they faced was the last thing that Clara would've expected; a large spider crouched on the wall of one of the abandoned houses and snapped its pincers, preparing to attack.

"Run!"

They dashed away as fast as their tired legs could muster in a random direction. Clara heard more scuttling just a few inches from her feet. Her heart raced a hundred miles an hour as she made her way to the nearest intact house with the Doctor by her side. She glanced over at him to make sure he was still with her when Clara tripped over her own rushing feet. As she hit her face on the gravel she cursed under her breath, knowing immense pain would follow soon after.

"Clara!" She heard the Doctor's startled voice and just nearly got up before being pinned down harshly by the large beast. It seemed to cackle in triumph as it kept her on the ground and prepared to strike. Clara closed her eyes, not wishing to see what would come next, but was surprised when the uncomfortable weight was thrown off unexpectedly, followed by more screeching. She opened her eyes in time to see a figure in the shadows slice at the spider with a large sword.

The Doctor finally made it to her side and helped her up, "Are you okay? Are you hurt?" He said in haste, looking Clara over for any open wounds or serious injuries.

"I'm alri-AH!" It was more in surprise than in pain when Clara finally felt the scratches on her face from the fall. Her nose wasn't bleeding thankfully, but everything still ached miserably. "Careful, it's just the aftershock. Come on we better get inside before any more come around." The Doctor turned around to face the player that had saved Clara, "Thank you for saving her, to whom do we owe the pleasure…?"

The figure stepped out of the shadows to reveal one of the familiar box-shaped characters that seemed to inhabit the game. This one in particular had brown hair with a red bandana around his head. He wore a white athletic shirt with long black slacks that. If not for the generic block size, Clara would've guessed he was around his early twenties.

"My name's Dragon reborn9," _Of course, an American gamer. Go-figure. _Clara thought, recognizing the accent the gamer possessed. "And why in the world are you outside? Get in here!" He abruptly shoved the Doctor and Clara into the nearest intact house without another word.

When he shut the door, he looked out the windows and put up several torches around the single room. When he was finished, Dragon reborn9 finally blew out a sigh of relief and turned to the Doctor and Clara. "So, who are you guys?"

The Doctor spoke up. "I'm the Doctor and this is Clara. Mind if we crash here for a bit and ask a few questions?" He leaned casually against one of the walls and eyed the sword that was still in the gamer's hand cautiously.

"I don't mind, it's not my place anyway." The player seemed to shrug it off, "I'm just a pvp'er, I go wherever I please, and this was just my stop for the night anyway. You've got questions, I may have answers. Ask away!"

"What exactly was that spider that attacked me?" Clara piped up as she settled herself on the hard floor.

"It's just a spider, one of the many mobs out here that try to kill you in the dark." Dragon stated matter-of-factly.

"I'm sorry, a what?" The Doctor said in clear confusion.

The player looked between the both of them and wore (from what they could guess) an amazed expression, saying, "Wow, you really are noobies. Please tell me you at least know what game you're playing."

"Nope! Haven't the slightest clue. Why don't you just make things easier and tell us in one big summary what we're getting into here." Clara was in no mood to have the whole back and forth scenario with the questions.

"All of it?" Dragon reborn9 seemed taken aback by the mysterious pair's ignorance of the game.

"Yep." The Doctor and Clara said at the same time, sharing a small smile with one another and then turning their attention back to the gamer.

The player blew out a stream of air and started, "Okay. This is a sandbox game called 'Minecraft' where everybody can choose what he or she wants to do, having complete freedom with the game. You can become an architect, warrior, hunter, miner, admin of a server, programmer, anything you can think of.

After several updates, monsters or 'mobs' were added over time to the game: zombies, skeletons, spiders, wolves, creepers…"

"Creepers?" Clara interrupted, clearly perplexed by the notion of generated players that just stalked you.

"Yes, creepers." He answered, "A glitch in the coding of an animal back when the game was still new, after a while they made it into a mob. They're called creepers because they make almost no sound and they creep up behind you to eventually blow up in your face."

"Sounds lovely." The Doctor said sarcastically.

Dragon reborn continued, "Now onto _your _predicament. You're in an online server where you can connect with other gamers that are on the same server, sadly for you guys it's a pvp only, or as abbreviated for player-versus-player. Any other questions?"

"Why is it unfortunate for us if it's pvp?" Clara crossed her arms, wondering why he was singling them out.

"You guys can't even fend off a simple spider." Dragon chuckled at their hopelessness.

The Doctor sat back against the wall next to Clara. "What happens if you die in this game?"

"You die and then re-spawn back to where you began at the start of the game, unless if you've already set a spawn, then you're left with nothing all over again. But I wouldn't advise you go everywhere dying willy-nilly."The Doctor gave a small nod as if a theory was proven correct.

A short silence filled the room as Dragon reborn9 waited for more questions, but as none were asked he tossed the sword he was holding to the Doctor saying, "Here, you'll need this to protect yourself and so forth. If you need me I'll be on the roof of the church."

"Why are you leaving us?" Clara inquired. He was the one who knew this game and what they were in for, so she wasn't exactly comfortable with the fact that he was leaving them both there in the dark.

"I'm sure you'll manage on your own." He hollered back as he left the house, closing the door behind him.

Once the two were left alone in the pressing silence, the Doctor got up and began walking towards one of the windows. "Why don't you get some sleep, I'll keep guard."

"Don't you need to sleep?"

"No. I don't sleep very much anyway. Go lay down, I'll be here if you need me." He gave a small smile and sat at his post, looking out for danger.

_Typical Doctor…_Clara couldn't help but smile back as she turned over on her side, back facing her beloved friend. As much as she wanted to fall into a peaceful slumber she couldn't manage to. It was as if the game itself prohibited it. Clara gave a great sigh and let her mind wander for the time being.

It wasn't long before the Doctor came over and shook her gently saying, "Clara, wake up. It's time to go." She got up reluctantly but gratefully as she stretched her sore joints. Before she had time to speak, the Doctor led her over to the window, saying, "We've got to find a way out of here." Before she could ask why she noticed the outside ground's more realistic tone, with actual blades of grass glittering in the dew and the clouds more puffy than the usual blocks that dotted the sky.

"Why would we need to go?" Clara was nearly mesmerized by the beauty of the morning and wondered how it could possibly be a bad sign.

"With the Tardis through the rift, our reality is bleeding through, except we'll be the only ones affected by it because we came in here from that reality. Everyone else will still see blocks because they're _using_ the game, not _in _it_." _ The Doctor said.

"So, if our reality is bleeding through…how come the only thing that changed is the grass and clouds?"

"It'll take time for all of it to come through, the longer we stay, the more reality we'll see."

"Well, that's not bad is it?" _How could a simple change of scenery be something to worry about?_

The Doctor gestured outside, "Think about it, if this becomes our reality…pain and exhaustion will become more immediate and dangers will become _more_ than a normal threat." He leaned forward to give the notion that he was being dead serious with Clara and said in a dark tone, "Imagine what would really happen if we were to die here. The spawn wouldn't work with us by then and we'd be stuck in a near-eternal limbo."

Clara then grasped the whole situation with dread and asked, "So what do we do?"

The Doctor picked up the sword that was leaning against the wall and walked towards the door, "We find whoever wants us or the Tardis, and fast."

**Thanks for everything guys, especially for sticking around for this long! So please be patient for the next chapter (*cough* ****cough***** Kat) and I'll update soon :D**


	4. Chapter 4

**Enjoy Ch. 4! And reviews are my life so please R/R :)**

Clara followed close behind the Doctor as he walked over to the village's church where Dragon reborn9 sat contentedly with another sword in his lap. The only difference was that he, like some of the surrounding landscape, looked real. Clara was about to ask the Doctor but before she could speak he said, "It's just part of the reality that's coming through, you'll see more of it along the way." Clara nodded and noticed now that the block shapes for the gamers were gone, she could really get an image of Dragon's character. His hair was a complete and raggedy mess with a dirty red bandana around his head, and his shirt with pants looked like they'd certainly seen better days. _Okay, quite a different contrast from yesterday…_She thought, thinking how much 'cleaner' he was the day before. Though the only thing that stood out to her now, were his striking crimson eyes.

"Hey hey! Rise and shine, glad you made it through the night." Dragon said as he wore a wild grin, getting up to meet the two bedraggled travelers. It seemed slightly out of place to see natural movements in a real form than one that used to be strictly cubic.

The Doctor clapped his hand on the gamer's back in a friendly greeting, "Glad too. Listen, could you do us a small favor?" The Doctor smiled back and stuck the sword in the ground next to him to lean on.

"Sure…what is it?" Dragon reborn backed away slightly and looked suspicious as he crossed his arms and shifted his weight side to side. As if they were going to ask him for valuables or huge tasks to do.

"We'd like for you to give us an all-rounder tutorial of the game. Show us the right and wrong things to do, how to get supplies…the works."

The player's face lit up in relief as his smile came back and said, "Oh yeah, sure! I don't really have anything else to do. Listen, I've got uh…about thirty minutes until I have to get offline so I guess I'll make this fast. Come on." He tilted his head to the side, motioning to one of the forests that were close to the village.

They walked along the plains in silence as they made their way to the trees ahead. Once they reached the edge, Dragon reborn started speaking, "Okay, first thing that you've got to do when you spawn is get wood. Without it means no shelter, food, or protection. So go ahead and start punching a few trees."

"Uh, well, that didn't quite work out for us last time…" The Doctor piped up as he made his way over to a tree.

"What do you mean, 'didn't work out'? Something wrong with your computer mouse?" Dragon interrupted.

"Yes, exactly! There's something wrong with the mouse…" Clara said, not willing to hurt her hand like the Doctor did the previous day.

Dragon reborn9 glanced curiously from the Doctor to Clara and resigned as he threw up his hands and said, "Well, get it fixed or something. Here," he tossed an ax to both of them, "start chopping, I'll need those back when you're done." With that, He walked off to some other part of the forest, leaving a perplexed Clara and a nearly giddy Doctor behind.

"What's that look for?" Clara looked over to the Doctor to see him wearing a childish grin on his face.

"Sorry, just…playing a video game in real life. You've got to admit, it's pretty cool!" With that, he tossed his ax in the air and caught it just in time to use the momentum, swinging it at the tree. As the ax came in contact with the wood, a cubic section of it shrunk up and hovered on the spot just like before.

Clara laughed in amusement, "You're crazy!"

"Exactly!" He said as he began to chop more, "Life would be very boring if there weren't crazy people!" Clara chuckled and began to chop. It was all very easy at first, chop once or twice and you get a tiny block, but then as the time stretched on, her arms began to tire. Sweat dripped down Clara's forehead as she looked up at the sky to see that it was only mid-day. She took a deep breath and rested against the trunk of one of the trees she was working on, saying idly, "I think having to actually do manual labor in a video game kind of defeats the whole purpose of it right…?"

"Not really…" The Doctor panted as he relaxed against his tree, "Haven't you ever heard of Kinnect?"

"At least in Kinnect you don't have to chop trees and fend for yourself in the wilderness in your own living room." Clara chided as she rested her aching arms on the soft grass, thinking that if not for the danger, she would have loved the change to the landscape.

A curious thought came to her as she glanced around the nearly cleared area, "What happened to all of the small blocks of wood we cut down?"

"I was hoping you'd ask that." The Doctor popped up from his place and sat down next to Clara saying, "I was figuring out the answer while you were resting last night." He snapped his fingers and one of the wooden blocks came to rest in his hand.

"How did you do that?" Clara grabbed the cube and inspected it as if it had an activation button on it or something but no, just an ordinary block.

"Remember the block that I got from hitting the tree earlier yesterday? I put it in my pocket only to find it gone later. After trying to remember where I possibly could have put it, the thought of that particular item I wanted was stuck in my head. So after some more intense thinking it just popped up out of nowhere. I think in this game the players store their materials in an invisible inventory, like an organized backpack."

"So, if the storage is invisible how can I put things away?" She tossed the cube back and stood up.

"It's automatic when you need to put it away. When your done using it you just have to think hard enough," He tossed the cube in the air and they watched as it disappeared, "and it's back in your head."

"So is that where you put your sword?" Clara had wondered where he'd put it since they came to the forest.

"Yes, and I think we've got enough wood now, come on let's go find our gamer." He picked up his ax and motioned for Clara to follow as they went through the forest. Clara looked from tree to tree, hoping to find their friend who would help them through the rest of the game, but she couldn't see even the slightest trace of him. "How are we supposed to find Dragon reborn if he could be literally anywhere on the map?"

"I don't know yet. I'm sure they must have some kind of coordinate system in this program but I haven't figured out how to use it yet."

"Then why are we walking around?"

"Killing two birds with one stone. Walking around helps me think and if we end up finding Dragon reborn9 then that'll fix our other issue."

"You know, he did say this was a public server. There's bound to be a text box or something where the players can chat if they don't have a computer camera…" Clara thought aloud, "Instead of thinking in terms of coordinates why can't we start thinking of ways to talk?"

The Doctor stopped suddenly and grinned at Clara, "Oh you clever girl!" He bopped her on the nose playfully and began to pace, muttering under his breath quietly until he abruptly stopped with his head down.

After a few silent seconds had passed, Clara was beginning to worry seeing this peculiar behavior from her friend, "You okay?"

The Doctor raised his head, the question seeming to bring him back to reality, well, 'reality'. "Hm? Oh right yes, it's the thought that counts remember? If I can think hard enough and imagine that I'm now speaking directly into the public server's chat then-" He was interrupted as he unexpectedly backtracked into a tree, as if some invisible wall slammed into him.

"Are you okay?" Clara rushed over to help, but the Doctor put a hand out saying, "Yep, got it. Sorry, bit of a surprise there. He responded and said he's back at the village."

"How do you know?" Clara stood perplexed as the Doctor regained his composure and began walking back the way they came.

"It's a direct link of conversation. I send a private message to him, and he'll send a private message back. No one else should listen in on our conversations."

"Why?"

"We still don't know who's after us. Whoever it is could be listening in and possibly find us before we're ready to face them."

"Wouldn't the perception filter-like thingy keep us hidden though?"

"Not unless if we make ourselves known. Like you being attacked by the spider, nobody could miss that. We draw too much attention to ourselves and then everyone will know we're in the server."

"Then how are we talking to Dragon reborn so much without other people noticing?"

"He's probably using a computer mic or Skype, just be glad that he is." The Doctor finished as they entered the village. The houses now looked like real proper establishments instead of the normal and organized blocks as usual. This didn't really surprise the two as Dragon reborn9 came rushing around the corner of one of the abandoned buildings and stopped just before he was about to crash into them.

"So! You've collected your wood?" He smiled and put his hands on his hips, panting.

"Yep!" They both said in unison and handed the axes back.

"Thanks, glad you remembered the axes! Okay, now that you've got your wood, I'll teach you a bit about crafting. It might take a while to learn, but I'm sure you'll get the hang of it soon enough." Clara sighed in exhaustion, leaning against the house while the Doctor clapped and rubbed his hands together anxiously and in full anticipation of the task ahead.

* * *

><p>Clara's mind spun with all sorts of 'crafting recipes' when they were finished. At first the whole task of learning them all intimidated her, but now that she was finished, she felt confident in the skill. They had gone in a matter of minutes from making sticks and torches to Redstone mechanisms. Most of the supplies came from Dragon reborn of course.<p>

"Tomorrow we'll go mining, and then you can stop leeching off of my supplies." He joked.

After the lesson the sun was setting and it was time to go inside. On the way to their village house, Clara stopped Dragon9 reborn and asked, "Hey, last night I couldn't sleep at all. Can you not rest at night in this game?"

He laughed a bit as if she just told a funny joke, saying, "Oh no no no, you can rest in this game but for one, you need a bed. And two, it's a public server; no one's going to get in bed because the whole community would have to sleep at the same time." He tilted his head to the side, contemplating his thoughts aloud, "And kind of think of it, I'm glad we can't sleep on this server. Imagine, you're sound asleep in your bed and then someone walks in to steal your stuff or kill you."

"What a pleasant thought," She rolled her eyes, "but thanks for the memo." She smiled at him and walked ahead where the Doctor was waiting by the door of their temporary house.

"Same place as usual?" The Doctor called over to the player.

"Yep, I'll be in the church." With that, Dragon reborn9 bid them a goodnight and went inside the building without another word.


	5. Chapter 5

**Hey guys! Thanks for waiting :) I'm currently on vacation so my other fanfics will be slightly postponed for now. (*cough* sorry for my SMLI fans :C )**

Clara's small dozing was rudely interrupted by a loud groaning noise, "I'm trying to get some rest, be quiet…" After all, her short 'naps' were the only thing she possibly came close to in terms of sleep. _Stupid game…_She grumbled in her head, curling tighter on the hard floor and trying to shoo away the irritating noise. As she began to nod off again, the small groaning grew in volume and an alarming bashing against the door woke Clara up completely.

She stood up suddenly and looked over to see the Doctor pushing all his weight back against the door where she saw deformed and gross figures trying to intrude.

"Sorry, go on back to sleep. Everything's alright." The Doctor said in a mix of panic and anxiety. One of the figures gave a tremendous slam against the creaking door and the Doctor yelped as he tried to push back against the tremendous assault.

"No chance, I'm not going to sleep. Where's your sword?" Clara came over and pushed back against the door to try and help.

"I'm too busy keeping them outside, I don't have time to simply pull it out." More rumbles sounded from behind the battered door, almost as if the creatures outside were multiplying.

"What are these things?" Clara yelled over the steady roar, clearly flustered.

"Zombies, any chance you know where Dragon reborn9 is?" Before Clara could answer, the door gave way and the two were pushed back by the force of the blow.

"Now would be a great time for the sword!" Clara shouted as she got up off of her hands and knees, backing away from the masses of undead that were now approaching them.

"On it!" The Doctor shouted as he snapped his fingers and quickly took hold of the sword that immediately appeared out of thin air.

Clara got a better look at the zombies as she caught her breath. All of them were bedraggled and haggard with their clothes hanging loosely from their devastatingly thin bodies. Parts of their facial features and limbs were either gone or completely lost in the mass of gore that shown from past accidents. To top it off, their expressions were completely void except for their pitch black eyes.

Clara turned her head away to let the sick feeling fade as she heard guttural growls in response to the blows from the Doctor's sword. Finally regaining her composure, Clara looked up to see the Doctor holding back one of the mobs which was currently sparring with him using another sword as well, as if it was picked up along the monster's way.

"Go get the gamer!" The Doctor shouted.

Clara needed no more further instruction as she took out an ax and smashed through one of the walls of the house. Pushing away the boards of battered wood, she raced over to the church. Glancing back, she saw the stream of zombies that were currently flooding the house she was sheltering in just moments ago. _Hold on Doctor…_she said inside her head as she burst through the church door shouting, "Zombies!"

"I know, I got it." Dragon reborn9 came rushing down the ladder and came out the door with a bow across his back and an iron sword in hand. She led him outside to the horde of monsters that were crowding around the tiny house. Dragon's eyes grew wide at the sight and he ran a nervous hand through his already messy hair, "That's a lot more than I expected…" Without hesitation, and with a mad grin, he tore off right into the pile of the raging undead. Clara left him to the battle as she sought safety on the roof of the church, seeing there would be no way for her to help.

"Clara!" Dragon reborn skidded back over to her with a handful of mobs tailing him. He tossed his bow and quiver to her on the roof, "Start sniping." She nodded nervously and fumbled with the bow in her hands as she set up for firing an arrow.

**Doc's POV**

The Doctor glanced back briefly to see Clara's escaping form as she crawled out of the hole she made in the wall. It didn't quite surprise him that these mobs could pick up tools and use the weapons against him as he struggled and slashed against the growing horde. beads of sweat beginning to drip from his brow, he fought on relentlessly for his life. _Come on Clara hurry up…_He groaned inwardly as he took down another zombie. As if in answer to his thoughts, he heard slashing coming from the open doorway and soon saw Dragon reborn9 joining in the fight.

"How ya doing?" The gamer said casually as they fought back to back with the monsters closing in.

"Fine…you?" The Doctor panted in the effort and began to feel his arms ache with each swing of his sword.

"Dandy." Dragon shot him a quick tired smile and continued to press on. The mass of zombies were beginning to thin and soon enough, as the attack kept going, the numbers of monsters were decreasing. A few seconds later, the only remains of the beasts were the leftover floating pieces of rotten flesh.

"Now that wasn't right…" Dragon reborn said as he hunched over and caught his breath. He looked up and his eyes grew wide in astonishment, catching the Doctor's attention and causing him to turn around as well. There in the upper window he caught a glimpse of a figure dash away, the only thing that struck him were the player's strikingly white eyes.

"Come on." Dragon reborn said and dashed out the door with the Doctor right behind. They skidded to a stop and saw the 'gamer' fly off into the distance without a trace.

"What was that?" The Doctor spun around to see Clara holding a bow and run over beside the baffled two.

"Dragon?" He looked over to the gamer who seemed to be staring off into space. The player still looked dazed as he said, "I'm checking who's online at the moment, the only issue is that there was no gamer tag to identify who it was so it could only mean that it's just a hacker." His tone was almost unsure as he came out of the daze and walked back over to the broken in house, beginning to fix and repair the damage, "Sometimes people online like to mess around with the other players. That's probably all that happened."

"You sure?" Clara went back inside the house and sat down in a corner with the bow in her lap.

"Well, that horde was not a normal one. So it's either a hacker or Herobrine, and I don't want to be one of those noobs who always assume it's him." He took a pause and said in a dramatic, evil, and creepy voice, "The infamous Herobrine returns!" He chuckled to himself as if the very thought was ludicrous enough.

"Who's Herobrine?" The Doctor asked as he slouched against the wall, "Is he an urban legend or something? Or some sort of boss you have to beat to win the game…?"

Dragon reborn scoffed, "No, he's just a myth. People use the story all the time to pull pranks on the noobies. You know, convincing them that their house is haunted or that they live in a cursed server."

"What's the story then?"

He looked disheveled and glanced at the two in hopelessness, "Oh no, please don't ask…I don't want you people to become one of those players that devote every moment online to finding a figure that doesn't even exist. It's like conspiracy theorists in Minecraft!"

"Come on, we won't be those people!" Clara waved a hand dismissively, "By the way, you said you'd teach us everything about this game and I'm pretty sure that would include myths and legends." She looked at him quizzically and smiled up at him.

He sat down with them and began speaking reluctantly, "To make a long story short, he goes around making weird structures, and on some occasions, killing players. But that's rare." He waved a hand dismissively and went on, "Basically a blip in the system so to speak. Once it was reported, he was removed from the basis of the game but some say or 'discover' that he's still in the system. So you get all these stories and whatnot about the guy: vengeance, hauntings, and nearly anything else that can put a much darker tone on him."

"So what happened to the glitch?" Clara asked.

"He was 'removed' after the next update, people still say he's around though."

"Do you believe he still exists?"

"Heck no, I think people just use the story and add their own material to it to give players the creeps. They change their looks and pop up in gamers faces just to get a gag." He crossed his arms and looked slightly disgusted at the very notion.

"Well, let's just hope he doesn't come back." The Doctor clapped Dragon on the back and got up, beginning to usher the player outside, "We'll just get ourselves organized for now and I'll see you in the morning." Dragon glanced back suspiciously and walked out the door, the Doctor shutting it behind him.

"We're going after Herobrine aren't we?" Clara smirked and shuffled over as the Doctor came over.

"We still don't know if it's him, but judging by our luck it probably is." He sat down and sighed, "I've been checking the readings on the sonic lately and found a traceable amount of rift energy, you know the crack we came through." He scratched the back of his neck and added in confusion, "Only weird thing is, the trace is always somewhere else when I check."

"Where is it now?"

He whipped his sonic out and activated it, moving it in different directions until it rested toward the door.

"Is it right outside…?" Clara whispered in case the one who was looking for them sat just outside the door.

"No, no, it's just in that direction. We'd have to follow it, don't worry it won't be here any time soon." He put away his device and patted her on the back saying, "Get some rest, tomorrow we'll get all our supplies and be on our way." With that, he got up and walked towards the window where he took up his guard once again.

**Please Review :D**


	6. Chapter 6

**I know, I know…been awhile :( sorry about that. I would give some good excuses, but I know you just want to get to the story so- (Oh yeah, please review too! ;)**

The Doctor trudged along behind the gamer Dragon reborn9 and his beloved friend Clara wearily. After the long night of sparring with zombies, it was a relief to walk freely out into the fresh sunlit dawn. The dew glistened like tiny jewels in the blades of grass that tried to reach as far as they could stretch to the bright morning sun. The mountains in the distance stood tall and powerful with their peaks overshadowed by large fluffy clouds. Unexpectedly, the soft chirping of birds seemed to announce the small group's arrival every time they flew past.

He snapped out of the daze in sudden surprise as he slipped over the slick grass, balancing his weight out at the last second before he could fall. Unfortunately in doing so, he accidently twisted his ankle painfully. _Great. Just great…_The Doctor grumbled inwardly as he bent over and massaged the sore spot to soothe it as much as possible. Straightening up again he continued onward with Clara and the player, who at the time were completely oblivious to the small mishap as they were in deep conversation. The small injury wasn't as bad as some of the other casualties he'd taken, after all he hadn't exactly come out of the fight the night before unscathed. Getting cuts and harsh gashes where he didn't quite manage to fully block a few hits from the other's weapon, whether it be a sword or a cold, bony hand.

Shivering slightly and trying to brush away the horrors of last night, he ran up to Clara and Dragon reborn, interrupting their small bit of silence, "Hello! Right, so where are we going again?"

"We're going to the mines. There you'll be able to get your supplies and be on your way." The gamer smiled and added, "You might want to keep that sword on you, there'll be plenty of mobs once we're in the dark." The Doctor gave a satisfied nod but on the inside he was completely crestfallen. Just the thought of taking up the sword again seemed to make his aching limbs groan in protest. _The sooner we get out of here the better. _He needed to come up with a quick plan for escaping this virtual reality; otherwise he and Clara would be doomed to live the rest of their lives in a video game, as much as it sounded like fun at first, it now seemed like an unescapable nightmare now.

Suddenly, an arrow whizzed past his face, just skimming his hair. Yelping in surprise, he ducked out of the way of a second shot, grabbing Clara's hand, and making a b-line to the nearest patch of forest. Peaking around a large oak, the Doctor spotted Dragon reborn9 pulling out his bow and firing at what almost looked to be a...gamer?

"No!" He nearly dashed out of the trees, anticipating that he could stop the small fight between Dragon and this other anonymous player; but stopped himself short when he remembered that this was a game. No one would actually be killing anyone…right?

Dragon reborn glanced back at the two huddling in the trees, "Stay back!" He and his opponent advanced on each other in an instant and were soon enthralled in a gruesome brawl. Dragon slammed his fist into the adversary's face, making a resounding 'crack!' The gamer rubbed his chin, briefly in pain before he grasped an arrow and jabbed it in Dragon's unprotected side. Dragon reborn shouted in agony and quickly deflected another blow, suddenly on the defensive as the anonymous player kept pressing the attack with his battered iron sword. Blow after blow and deflection after deflection, the players fought on for their very lives at this point.

The Doctor couldn't quite take it anymore. It was all just so…_real_. Even as the he got used to seeing _real_ looking trees and _real_ looking mountains, he still couldn't quite get used to seeing two average-looking individuals getting the crap beaten out of each other for the pettiest of reasons, even if it was just a game. Besides, he couldn't stand by and watch their only source of information of the game perish to another's sword.

Disregarding all instincts and safety, he burst out of the trees into the open and waved his hands trying to get the player's attention. "Stop!" To his dismay, the two only progressed in their fighting as he ran up to them. "Stop!" He brought out his own sword and deflected another blow that was meant for Dragon reborn9, stopping the attack abruptly.

Now that he was up close, the Doctor could get a better look at their attacker. Besides the bloody nose and swollen eye (along with many other gruesome injuries) from Dragon's relentless fistfight, the gamer had matted blond hair where a helmet might have been a while ago, bright blue eyes, and wearing a white hoody with black sweatpants that had a white stripe running down the outsides. If not for his raggedness and the bloodied sword in his right hand, the gamer could have passed as a bit of a pretty boy.

The mysterious gamer, seeing that he was outnumbered and outmatched, hesitated slightly, then turned tail and ran in the direction he came from before. Dragon was about to advance but the Doctor held him back, "No stop, he's not worth it." After pushing the restraining arm aside furiously, Dragon reborn9 threw a wicked punch to the Doctor's face, causing the Time Lord to reel back in astonishment while clutching his jaw in a mix of shock and pain.

"What the hell was that?! I could've handled him!" Dragon reborn fumed as Clara came rushing out of the trees.

"We didn't need to kill him." The Doctor stated calmly as he stood up straight and walked back to the wounded player, keeping his temper in check.

"Uh, yeah! We did!" Dragon reborn9 stalked toward the Doctor until the two were just inches from each other's faces, "Listen noob, in here, on this server, it's kill or be killed. You can never trust an alliance; you should never get yourself acquainted with _anyone_, and finally, you should never let your opponents go. They'll heal up, find you, and kill you for compensation or revenge if they know where you're going."

"Where I come from, we don't kill for no reason." The Doctor was finding it hard to keep himself calm and collected, trying not to let out all of his anger and stress that he's bottled up ever since arriving in the stupid game.

"Whoever said it was without reason? He could've killed me and taken my stuff if I let my guard down, then where would you be? Call it self-defense. And what do you mean, 'where I come from'?"

Clara put her hands on her hips, interrupting what Dragon reborn was going to say next, "Hold on, if you just said to never trust anyone and never make an alliance, why would you decide to team up with us? Or are you just waiting until we get supplies and then kill us? You just contradicted your own opinions."

He whirled around to Clara at the assumption. "I let you poor saps live because I needed something to do."

"So that's all we are, entertainment?" The Doctor questioned.

Dragon reborn waved his arms out in frustration, "No! I was just getting bored online so I just figured I could help you guys get along in the game!"

"And then what, kill us?" Clara said.

"No, I'd just let you leave on your own and then I would go back to my normal routine."

"Want me to remind you what you said your 'normal routine' was from earlier?"

"Just because I'm a pvper doesn't mean that I can't be a nice guy every now and then."

"Oh, so this is you being nice to us!"

"Actually, yes it is! Technically, I could run this sword right through you right now couldn't I?"

The Doctor stepped in at this and said in a dangerously low voice, "You lay a hand on her, there will be consequences."

"Oh yeah? And what are you going to do, kill me? Besides it wouldn't matter, she'd just re-spawn in the spot you came from earlier and find the way back."

"She would be alo-" The argument was cut off from an enormously loud 'crash' and 'boom' as rain began pelt the ground where it fell and lightning arched across the darkened sky. Dragon reborn9 held a sour expression as rain soon began to drench his hair and clothes. He mumbled an irritated 'come on' and the three walked on in awkward silence towards the ominous and dark cave ahead.

Once they arrived, Dragon reborn gave them a brief tutorial on what materials you can mine using different qualities of tools and gave a small description of things to look out for.

"I'm going to be off in a different part of the cave system. We might come across each other considering this whole place is a maze, remember to put torches down along your way so you won't get lost and above all," He shivered slightly as if recalling some horrifying memory, "stay away from the spider webs. The denser they get, the more likely you're to run into danger." Without another word, he pulled out a pickaxe and started down one passageway.

"Oi." The Doctor started, the gamer looking back expectantly, "Thanks." Dragon just nodded, still apparent that he was stressed from their argument earlier, and walked into a dark passageway without a single glance back.

So taking out their stone picks, the Doctor and Clara went off into the dark, abandoned mine shafts. Dimly lighting their way along with a meager supply of torches.

* * *

><p>"Even though everything is supposed to be blocks, you've got to admit, the game makers paid a lot of attention to detail." Clara said as she gazed up at the rotting support beams and small cobwebs that hung loosely on the ceiling. The whole ruined mineshaft sent shivers down both the travelers' spines, sensing that something was watching them only to turn around and find no one there.<p>

"You've got that right." The Doctor said as he brushed aside some thick spider webs that were stuck to the wall, revealing a small cluster of gold ore. They had been finding more and more minerals the deeper they went, no longer feeling small breezes or hearing the dull roar of the storm above their heads.

He sighed and placed a furnace down, loading it with coal and his leftover iron ore. With the abundant resources he gained recently, he was beginning to run low on space in his inventory. Soon his thoughts began to shift to his companion. Clara hadn't been talking very much ever since the horde of zombies came just the other night. He glanced at her as he waited patiently for his iron to be smelted.

Clara's back was to him as she hacked away at the coal ore in front of her. She was beginning to look a bit disheveled and slightly pale as her breath came out in raggedy gasps. She turned around when she was finished mining the coal, showing her tired eyes and dirty face. But overall to say in the very least would be a major understatement: Clara was definitely sleep deprived. Seeing her like this pained the Doctor to no end, but also brought to light on how terrible _he_ must look.

He snapped out of his thoughts as she smiled at him, putting her hands on her hips saying, "You alright? You've kind of been a bit off lately…" Blowing a loose strand out of her hair, Clara turned back to the wall and set up her own furnace, beginning working on it as they spoke.

"Off?" The Doctor raised an eyebrow in slight amusement, "You should see yourself."

She chuckled, "Oh, I guess it's just the game getting to me. I might have stopped having fun with it ever since the mob attacks."

"Same here." The Doctor said, sitting down and deciding to take a break as he set his pickaxe against the wall. Ever since the zombie attack last night, they had so far encountered nine skeletons, two creepers, and five spiders in the deep mine tunnels.

"What's that over there?" Clara stated as she glanced around the rickety shaft, her gaze settling on a small light at the end of a tunnel.

Before the Doctor could respond, the two heard Dragon reborn's voice as it seemed to come from everywhere at once, "I got to go guys, I'll be online tomorrow. Good luck!" Shortly after the announcement, a public message sounded in their heads, 'Dragon reborn9 has left the game.'

"I guess it's just us now." _And any other merciless player we may bump into…_ The Doctor thought. After getting no response, he looked up and found Clara walking toward the tunnel with the tiny pinprick of light. He shot up and ran over to her side, Clara jumping in surprise saying, "Whoa whoa whoa, I'm fine! I'm just going to check out where the light's coming from."

"It's probably just from a stray torch that someone left behind or someone's running a furnace."

"No one's been here before us so it couldn't be either of those. I just want to check it out…"

The Doctor gave up, realizing that he was probably just being a little too cautious. Clara did have a point though, as far as either of them knew, they were the first to set foot in the cave. He was interested in where it was coming from…besides; it could just be a small spot of lava or maybe one of Dragon's torches if he ever came by this part of the mine. Still weary, he decided to walk along with Clara, making there way to the light at the end of the tunnel.

When they drew closer, the two noticed the source of the light was coming from a small torch that hung against a support beam. The Doctor's breath hitched when he saw that beyond the beam was an incredibly thick patch of cobwebs. "We need to go, find a different tunnel." Clara nodded nervously, remembering what Dragon reborn9 said about staying away from the patches of webs.

Clara turned around to head back only to find encroaching darkness from where they came, "Doctor…?"

He turned around and his eyes grew wide in surprise at the darkness, "Someone must have extinguished our torches." Immediately, the Doctor heard a small scuttling behind him. Out of reflex at this point, he whipped out his sword and whirled around to find a tiny spider creeping up to them. Unlike the ones he'd seen before, this one had a blue tint to its hair and was much smaller than the large black ones from earlier.

"Doctor." Clara nearly whispered in a nervous tone, still facing the darkness. The Doctor had to keep an eye on the so far passive spider as he made a quick glance in Clara's direction. To his dismay, several more of the same tiny mobs were coming out of the darkness and into the small torchlight. Soon enough, more of the scuttling creatures began to crawl out of the blackness and surround them.

Clara picked up the solitary torch and brandished it in front of the spiders that cowered away from the light. The monsters hissed and screeched in anger, cackling and almost daring either of the travelers to strike first as the monsters' numbers grew.

Suddenly, a spider that wasn't being watched struck Clara in the leg, biting her and hanging on. Clara screamed in pain, shoving the torch onto the spider's face and burning it off. The Doctor whirled around, "Are you alright?" In that instant of a distraction, all of the small spiders charged. In seconds, the creatures swarmed the two who fought desperately for their lives.

The Doctor swung his sword at the nearest bunch in a sad attempt to get the mobs away. After his sword made contact with one, the weapon practically disintegrated in his grasp, apparent that it's been too worn for any more use. Looking to his left he noticed that Clara wasn't in any great circumstances either. As she frantically fought, she would clutch her leg where the spider bit her before and cry out in anguish. The Doctor made a dash to her but was tackled to the ground from behind, face planting and hearing a small 'crack' as his nose began to bleed profusely. Ignoring the blast of pain, he struggled against the uncomfortable weight on is back and turned his head around to find multiple spiders pinning him down. He struggled to regain footing, but all of his attempts proved to be futile as one of the beasts bit him in the neck.

Immediately, a burning sensation erupted through his body as if acid was running through his veins. The spiders were poisonous, the Doctor realized in horror as the venom coursed through his system. He struggled and cried out in pain, his whole body feeling like it was on fire. While he was writhing in agony, he stole a quick glance at Clara and all of his hopes plummeted. She was on the ground and completely motionless, the remaining spiders that weren't already attacking him dragged Clara away into the pitch-blackness of the tunnels ahead. "Clara!" The Doctor's limbs began to relax as the burning was reduced to a sharp sting that numbed all of his senses. His vision began to swim and his thoughts became muddled as he gave up the struggle and became limp. The last thing he heard was the faint shuffling of the spiders dragging his body away into the darkness before he fell unconscious.


	7. Chapter 7

**Ok, please don't hurt me…I was gone on vacation for two weeks without access to a computer and right after that I had a LOAD of homework to finish. So now that that's out of the way I will give you the update and an imaginary box of cookies for your troubles. :3**

The Doctor awoke very slowly. His ears rang loudly and he was sore all over, especially his back for some reason… His head pounding painfully and the scratches that ran along his body that burned ferociously didn't make his situation any better. He was lying up against a cold wall on an uncomfortable floor as far as he could tell. The Doctor tried to shift around to get in a more comfortable position, but found that he was restrained in a cocoon of webs that went up to his neck. Stifling a nervous shiver, he checked the rest of his surroundings as his eyes adjusted to the complete darkness that surrounded him.

Spider webs. Spider webs everywhere. He appeared to be in a small chamber with rotting support beams similar to the area in the abandoned mine he was in before. Only the area was completely dark and had a single exit point that was as large as a small air vent, all the rest of the hole was sealed off by walls of hard stone. He recoiled in disgust as the smell of death and rotting assaulted him.

He was missing something, something huge that was very important. What was he forgetting? Did someone die? Did he lose his sonic screwdriver? He lost something. The Doctor tried to remember as much as he could, but found it hopeless, knowing fully well that the poison from the attack was possibly still in his system as it made his limbs numb and his mind fuzzy. Wait…attacked? When was he atta- then he realized what had happened recently as he suddenly remembered the vicious spider attack and what had happened to-_Clara_! His mind screamed as he recalled the tragedy, mentally slapping himself in the face for forgetting for a minute.

He looked around frantically for his friend and found to his horror that she wasn't in the small room. _She can't be dead, she can't be dead…_He chanted in his mind desperately, almost to the point of praying that his impossible girl was still alive.

Using that for his motivation, he tried to move his arm to his jacket's pocket where his sonic was. The Doctor just barely managed to get the sonic out, the webbing was so tight that he could just almost move his arms and legs. _This is so uncomfortably like Frodo Baggins from Lord of the Rings…_he thought bitterly, remembering the scene from the film where Frodo was attacked by a spider and wrapped in webs. Then again, Frodo wasn't stuck in a video game that was slowly coming to life before the player's eyes.

_Got it!_ He thought as he activated the sonic and parts of the webs ripped and untangled itself, just managing to let him get out on his own. He practically jumped out of the restraints and was on his feet in seconds, relieved to be out of the webs and stretching his sore joints. _Right_, he thought, _get out of here alive, find Clara, follow the trace of rift energy to our captor, and leave this game. Just another day at the office…_The Doctor checked his supplies inventory and silently groaned as he realized he only had a few extra torches, a battered stone pickaxe, and little provisions to spare for later.

His thoughts were interrupted when he heard the sickeningly familiar sound of faint scuttling coming from the small hole in the wall. He looked around frantically; trying but failing to find another escape route or a suitable hiding place. Without any better ideas, the Doctor dropped to the floor behind a very dense patch of cobwebs that he could just barely peak through. He lay still on the hard floor and held his breath as he waited for what felt like an eternity until, a set of glowing red eyes appeared out of the crevice.

The cave spider seemed to be searching for its prey as it scuttled all around the chamber, slowly drawing nearer and nearer to the Doctor's hiding place. The Doctor's mind raced for a plan to get himself out of this with his life, certainly not wanting a repeat of earlier. _Come on, Doctor think!_ He was wrestling with the many possible outcomes of being revealed. Brushing an irritating piece of web from his face, a brilliant idea sparked in his mind.

Now ready for what was about to happen, he tensed and waited for the precise moment. _Just a few more steps…_When the spider was just inches away from him, he leapt out of his hiding place and surprised the mob. The cave spider gave a startled screech as it was tackled and pinned to the ground. The mob being too discombobulated to immediately react, the Doctor grabbed a huge clump of webs and began to wrap the strong, elastic material around the spider's legs and pincers, leaving it completely immobilized and in a state of pure shock and confusion.

When the work was done, the Doctor stood up and panted from the effort, patting the defenseless mob's head as he walked past it toward the crevice from which the spider came through. He placed a torch down to inspect the hole with better light. It was slightly bigger than the cave spider and was surrounded wall-to-wall with hard stone.

The Doctor gave a tired sigh as he was overcome with exhaustion, hunger, and thirst. At this point, he confirmed that the game was officially real to him and Clara. _Wherever she is…_He thought gravely. He slumped against the cold wall next to the struggling spider, catching his breath and idly nibbling on his last scraps of bread.

He let his mind wander as he rested. Since Dragon reborn9 was gone, he didn't really have anyone else he could rely on for answers and would still keep his identity hidden. Then again, Dragon reborn9 must have some friends, right? Would he even see the gamer again, knowing fully well that his connection with him was at the mercy of the young adult's mood of when to get back on to the server?

Then his mind wandered to where Clara could've gone. Refusing to believe that she was dead, he searched for other alternatives. Could she have escaped somehow and be looking for him? Could the spiders have been swept away by some underground river and Clara's just sopping wet in a harmless cavern? He rubbed his head as it started to ache with the many possibilities and questions that buzzed around in his mind. How was he supposed to find Clara-

"Of course," He exclaimed, "I'm so thick! I'm old and thick, why didn't I see this before?" The spider that had long given up its struggle almost seemed to roll its eyes and look expectantly up at the strange player who was now on its feet, talking at a million miles an hour.

"I did private messaging before with Dragon reborn9, if I could do that with Clara then I'd be able to know whether or not she's alive. That is, if she responds…" With unbreakable determination, he concentrated all his thoughts on Clara. Thinking only about her, he sent out his thoughts to the impossible girl, _Clara, please respond to this message to let me know you're alive. I'm in a cave system at the moment, just please let me know where you are and if you're okay._

With that, he cut the message off and waited for what seemed like an eternity. Each minute that went by left him with less and less hope that Clara was still alive. Just as he was about lose all hope of ever hearing from or seeing Clara again, he got the return message, _Doctor!_ She sounded relieved, but the telepathic voice sounded almost painfully strained.

_Are you all right? What happened?_ The Doctor asked frantically. He relaxed and let out the breath he just realized he was holding in. Finally the two could 'speak' back and forth.

_I'm fine_, Clara answered,_ I blacked out from the attack, but now…I'm not sure where I am._

_What does it look like, where you are?_

There was a pause for a long moment, and then he heard the response. _Sort of, like a large cave but…I don't see an exit. There's a really high ceiling and it's pretty dark. I can hear running water, but I still can't see a ruddy thing. Where are you?_

_Oh, I'm in a small stone hole with an immobilized cave spider along with a narrow escape passage that I'm going to have to work on in order to get out. So yeah, all's good on my end._

_Glad to know…so is this the part where you come up with something clever and you find a brilliant way to find me? 'Cause I've no clue where or how to find you…_

_I'm still working on that part. Give me a little while and I'll let you know. You'll know how to contact me if something happens._

_Okay, just be careful…_

The Doctor cut off the connection saying, "I can't make any promises…"

Deciding he had rested enough, he hopped up and began to pace the room in deep thought. Starting with the basics of what he knew about the situation, he worked his way along a train of thought. The spider's eyes following him around the chamber as he paced.

"Okay, so I'm stuck in a computer game that's potentially deadly and my options are extremely limited to the sonic and manual labor. Now let's see, computer games…what do they all have in common? Computers, computers, computers…they have software and programs. So what do those have? They've got sophisticated coding, so technically this game is a program or part of software and all of those have basic coding with which you could control everything. So…because I am not of the original program and the fact that I would be a 'player'...I could actually hack the system! I could change the codes of the game to fit my needs, but I could also do it without drawing much attention to myself, yes!" After the constant stream of rambles ended, the Doctor stopped his pacing and put his hands on his hips in thought. "But how am I going to manipulate the code…?" After more silent thinking, he snapped his fingers as the answer came to mind and he stepped into the middle of the chamber.

Clearing his mind once again, he thought deeply on the whole process of coding specific things to get different outcomes and the general hackings one could do on any computer. Then he applied that to everything he knew about the game. _So let's see…what if I could have more bread?_ Using the same tactic as sending a private message, he began to go through motions of hacking into the game and re-writing some of the code to give him alone more provisions. As soon as he finished, he sent the code in and then checked his inventory to find…nothing.

The Doctor sighed in dismay. There had to be some way to hack into the game…not that he necessarily needed to at the moment, but it would certainly make things easier in terms of getting out and finding Clara.

He was immediately pulled from his thoughts by a tearing sound behind him. He whipped around just in time to find the cave spider escaping its bonds and snap the webs that held his pincers in place. It ruffled itself a few times and hissed at him.

"Okay, that's not good." The Doctor said as he pulled out his miserable pickaxe for his last real defense. But a crazy thought struck him before he could attack the mob. Putting away the pickaxe, he pulled out a few bits of meat and tossed it in front of the spider before it could pounce. It stopped in its tracks and looked at the meat with what looked to be perplexity, then up to him, then back down toward the small morsel of food. To the Doctor's surprise, the spider snatched it up and scuttled over to a thick patch of webs in haste where it snacked.

"So that's how…" He breathed out in wonder, "I was trying to hack into the computer as if I was actually in front of the keyboard. Because I'm in the game I have to change it by doing different actions that aren't of the game's original programming. Which apparently includes making peace with some of the monsters…" He smiled at his luck, relieved that he solved the hacking situation. Now all he had to do was find Clara somehow.

After a few more minutes, the spider came back out of its hidey-hole and scuttled up to the Doctor. It looked up at him expectantly and chirped as if in a request for more.

"I don't have anymore, sorry." He silently acknowledged the silliness of the situation. He was talking to a virtual spider in a videogame that was programmed to kill. Now that he hacked into the system and changed that programming for the spider, he was now going to apparently reason with it. _But hey I just let this spider have artificial intelligence, if this works who cares if it's silly?_

"But I can definitely promise you that if you help me get out of here, you can have whatever you like." The Doctor made wild gestures to help the mob understand. Sure he felt ridiculous doing it, but if this worked it would prove that the hacking theory was a success and he'd be able to get by in the game a little easier.

The spider just stood there for a moment, and then scuttled into the exit hole. Going back to where it came from.

"Well, that was a load of total rubbish." The Doctor said in disappointment, feeling slightly cheated out of the time lost for talking to a spider instead of thinking up a better way to get out.

But only a few minutes later, he heard the sounds of scuffling and digging coming from the hole. Turning around slowly, the Doctor saw the same cave spider standing in the opening. Only it was covered in more dust and soil than usual and the once small opening was now a good-sized passageway big enough for the both of them to go through.

"Well aren't you a clever little spider." The cave spider seemed to stand taller and puff out his chest, pleased at the Doctor's acknowledgment. "Come along, Fuzzy." With a satisfied chirrup from the spider and a giddy smile from the Doctor, the two hurried down the tunnel.


	8. (

**Hey guys…I know it's been ages since the last few updates. I am sorry (and slightly ticked) to announce that I am putting all of my stories on hold because of the extreme business that is which my life right now :(. It's going to be quite awhile before any updates and but I can guarantee that I'll be working extra hard on the fictions! Please don't be upset and **_**please **_**continue to follow this story (I'd hate to get back to typing and find the crowd gone, you know?). Any-who, I've decided that I'd nearly finish the majority of my stories and **_**then**_** post them rather than making y'all wait for months/weeks at a time. I hope you understand and you will be patient until the next post, I am **_**planning **_**to update at the very earliest of Christmas.**

'**Till next time:**

**-Copper dragon1**


	9. Chapter 9

**Author: Hello again my beloved readers! Listen, uh…*rubs back of neck nervously***

**Clara: Say it…**

**Author: About the updates…I know it's been slow-going …**

**Doctor: *****crosses arms***** And?**

**Author: Aaaannd...**

**Dragonborn9: Just say it already!**

**Author: Do I have to? It'll sound like I don't care…**

**Clara: *****grabs author and aims for a punch***** Say it to them or else-**

**Author: Alright, alright, alright! *****takes deep breath***** Ihaventupdatedinawhilebecauseofschooltheholidaysandthefactthatimwritinganotherstoryatthemomentandijustcantdotwostoriesatonce!**

**Dragonreborn9: Say what?**

**Doctor: Even I couldn't understand that…**

**Author: *sigh* The point is, I've been very busy since the announcement last chapter and I'm currently working on another crossover fic that's taking up a lot of time. I can't really write two stories at once and since the writing's been faster and easier with my other story…I'm putting this one on hiatus until I pick it up again.**

**Dragonreborn9: You lazy bum!**

**Clara: The readers don't even know where I ended up at the end of the last chapter!**

**Doctor: I ran off to God-knows-where with a tiny cave spider named fuzzy!**

**Author: I know, I know! Yes, it's a sucky place to stop and put on hold, but I plan on finishing the story and **_**then **_**I'll update maybe once or twice a week so we won't have to go through this nightmare again.**

**Clara: *****sigh***** fine.**

**Dragonreborn9: Why is there a bunch of shattered glass on the floor?**

**Author: *****facepalm***** we just broke the fourth wall…**


	10. Chapter 10

**Thanks for waiting so patiently guys! I'll save the rest of the intro for later :3**

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><p><em>Glad to know…so is this the part where you come up with something clever and you find a brilliant way to find me? 'Cause I've no clue where or how to find you… <em>Clara thought as she looked out into the blackness of where she was.

_I'm still working on that part. _The Doctor replied in the private message,_ Give me a little while and I'll let you know. You'll know how to contact me if something happens._

_Okay, just be careful… _Clara didn't get another response after those last few words were exchanged. She waited a little longer but as no reply came, she turned her thoughts back to her surroundings.

She sat up and took a deep breath as cold, moist air hit the roof of her mouth sending small shivers down her spine and set the hairs on the back of her neck on end.

She stood up on shaky legs and began to stretch her sore muscles as she walked around the chamber. Clara looked through her inventory and pulled out a torch, which illuminated the cave with a soft, golden light.

Her surroundings weren't necessarily much to rejoice over as she found herself in a large, sealed-off cavern. The rock ceiling that towered above her was too high to see with the meager light she had. The cold ground beneath her feet was solid stone with a few patches of hard earth that held tiny shrubs or blades of grass that struggled up through the dirt. There were various patches of iron ore and coal that dotted the walls around her as she walked amidst the encroaching darkness that was penetrated by her torchlight.

Clara felt around her and kept her hand on the cold, stone wall to guide her along the circumference of the cave so as to get an idea of its true size. As her fingertips brushed gently against the damp rock, she would turn around quickly at the smallest of noises…sensing that she was not alone, but came to realize that no one was there behind her.

"Get a grip, Clara!" She whispered to herself. She desperately wanted to talk to the Doctor through the private messaging, but stopped every time as she realized that nothing dangerous was happening to her, and she'd just be wasting their time in the search for one another.

Clara stopped abruptly in her walk around the cave when she saw a small stream of water cascading down the wall as it glistened in the weak torchlight, trickling happily as it pooled in a dip of the floor in front of her feet.

Parched beyond comprehension, she placed her torch on the ground and kneeled by the pool to take a couple of sips of the cold, refreshing water. As the cool liquid touched her lips, a small sound echoed across the cavern that almost sounded like…laughter? Clara was startled out of her skin and she leapt from the puddle, torch in hand, looking around the cave frantically. "Who's there?" She said, voice shaking slightly.

She was only met with the sound of the trickling water behind her and the blackness that nearly seemed tangible. Clara closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths to calm down. With her eyes still closed, she focused only on the sounds around her.

There.

She could just barely here it. A deep chuckle that now seemed slightly closer than before.

Clara began to feel her heart race faster as it hammered in her chest, adrenaline beginning to run its icy course through her veins giving her legs pumping fuel for a swift retreat, yet she didn't move from the spot. She wanted to run oh-so badly, but her fear kept her feet planted to the ground as if she had turned to stone. She held her breath un-knowingly as the soft chuckle grew louder, the source of the sound growing nearer.

"H-hello?" Clara tried again, clearing her voice and sounding confident, "Show yourself!"

Something fast rushed past her with tremendous speed, making Clara's hair billow in the stirred air. She jumped back in terror and hit the back of the cave wall where she stood frozen with fear as the chuckling ringed in her ears. "Where are you?" She whispered as she trembled.

A deep rumbling voice that was cloaked in madness answered from all around her at once, "I am everywhere…and I am nowhere." The chuckling quickly grew to mad laughter that made Clara's skin crawl.

She hoisted her torch up and waved it around, hoping to get even a fleeting glimpse of the source of the voice to no avail.

"Who are you?" Clara demanded as she hesitantly stepped away from the stone.

"Who am I?" The mysterious voice answered back in a hushed, sickly-sweet tone, "Why, I'm the one to get you back to your little Doctor safe and sound."

"Yeah?" Clara skeptically answered back.

"Of course my darling!" It crooned, "Follow me."

"But I can't see you." Clara stated.

"Follow my light." The voice said.

And sure enough, a dot of tiny red light illuminated a small section of the area around it in a dim glow. It seemed to beckon her as it hovered in the air a few paces out of reach.

Clara knew following it would be a bad decision, but what else was she going to do? And there was always the chance that this disembodied voice was telling the truth… Maybe if she followed the light it _would _lead her to the Doctor. She had nothing to lose after all…

Clara stepped forward and began to follow it at a distance, leading her in a different direction in the dark cave. However, It didn't take very long for the red light to rest at the back of the cavern wall once a few minutes had passed.

Clara reached the still light to discover that it was a torch. It had a dull orangey-yellow ember at its core and its flaming head was a deep crimson that puffed out noxious fumes that reminded her of sulfur. She knew what this was. Dragon reborn9 showed this to her in one of their building and crafting lessons. _Redstone!_ The word shouted in her head.

But why did the redstone torch lead her here?

"Oy. You said you'd lead me to the Doctor. All I see is a stone wall." She crossed her arms and looked around as if trying to glare in the general direction of the voice.

"Oh, this is exactly where I needed to lead you." It said, "Your Doctor _is_ here don't you see? Look again."

Clara's hopes were up for a moment and she inspected the wall until she happened upon a stone button. She quickly pressed it and heard the sound of pistons working until a section of the wall split itself apart to reveal a small, dark room that held a huddled figure with its back facing her. It rocked back and forth, mumbling indecipherable words. The sound of chains dragging across the floor echoed in the room.

"Doctor?" She said anxiously before stepping into the chamber.

The figure's head snapped up at her voice and quickly turned around, shuffling toward Clara where her torch illuminated the spot.

"Clara?" The Doctor's voice answered frantically as he shuffled into the light. His form was ragged and decrepit, his clothes were ripped in several portions, and he was riddled with cuts and bruises. His hair was tussled and tossed in every direction and there was disparity in his eyes. "Clara, help me!" He tried to rush forward but the chains that were locked on his legs and arms held him back a few feet from the opening.

"Doctor!" Clara raced toward her friend in need, but as soon as she had touched his shoulder, he evaporated and vanished from her sight.

An illusion.

The voice mocked Clara's tone, "Oh Doctor! Doctor! I'll save you." It roared with laughter as Clara stood hopelessly in the entrance, "Don't worry my dear." The voice turned into a cold snarl, "If you want to see your Doctor alive again, _you will_ obey me."

Before Clara could respond, something hit her behind the head and she collapsed to the floor unconscious.

* * *

><p>"Honestly, how much longer until we're out?" The Doctor said with tired impatience.<p>

The dirty cave spider Fuzzy that tunneled ahead of him chirped an indignant response.

"Oy, it's been a long day and I haven't exactly gotten a lot of rest." He dodged a stray lump of rock that the spider hurled in his direction (possibly) unintentionally.

They had been digging for what felt like an eternity. The steady climb uphill was tedious and ultimately exhausting as is, not to mention the labor-intensive burrowing. Even though the two had been tunneling together, it was clear from the start that Fuzzy was much better at this.

_For such a tiny fella, he sure can dig. _The Doctor thought. The cave spider had managed to make a hole big enough for the both of them to travel with relative ease. Fuzzy also somehow knew exactly where and where not to dig by instinct. This astounded the Doctor as they raced through the passages until they came to a grinding halt.

"What is it?" He asked while taking a breath.

The cave spider had stopped in front of a wall of earth that was dripping wet. The spider backed away uneasily, eyeing the water in disgust.

"Oh, it's just a little bit of water. Here, I'll get it." The Doctor stepped forward and began unpacking the moist earth.

The spider chirped in fright and launched itself onto the Doctor, bowling him over onto the floor beneath them.

"What are you doing?" The Doctor breathed out as he pushed Fuzzy off and got back up, "It's only wet dirt what could it do?" He went back to dislodging the wet soil but was stopped short when the spider scuttled up the wall he was digging and hissed in his face.

"Get out of the way." The Doctor shoved the spider to the side in frustration. _I'm too close to the surface and too tired to be dealing with a hydrophobic spider that can't get a grip right now. _As he started to dig once again, the spider clicked its pincers angrily and tackled the Doctor to the ground again, pinning him in his place.

The Doctor struggled and tried to wrestle out of the spider's grip, "What the hell are y-"

A growing rumble sounded in their ears making the two freeze in their fight as the ground beneath them began to tremor. Exchanging looks of fear, the Doctor finally understood what was happening.

"Hold on to something!" He said, grabbing onto a large section of rock that held firm on the side of the wall. Fuzzy screeched in fright and quickly jumped onto the unsuspecting Doctor's back who yelped in surprise. "No, no, no, no, no, anywhere but here!" But Fuzzy held his grip tighter as the section of wall they were digging blew apart, rushing water bursting forth and nearly dragging the two stragglers under its torrent.

"Hold on!" The Doctor shouted over the roaring water. It streamed everywhere and ran all the way down their path that they dug. _So much for that…_ He looked around and blinked the water out of his eyes, searching for another way out, but unfortunately (to no great surprise) found none.

Dimly aware of Fuzzy still clinging onto his shoulders (trembling and soaked), he realized there was only one other alternative.

The Doctor turned to Fuzzy to make sure he was heard over the water, "I've got a plan…but you may not like it." The cave spider only tightened his grip even more on his ride and chirped a response.

Deciding that that meant 'Ok', the Doctor began climbing toward the pouring breach, going under the rushing water, and crawling his way up the walls of dirt that were breaking away from the tide. Water began streaming into his eyes and mouth, making the struggle even worse. He attempted to clear his vision but began to lose his grip in doing so. Catching himself quickly, he began his trek toward the surface again.

Once their heads finally broke the water, they only got precious air for a second before being completely dragged away by a swift current.

Fuzzy was immediately dislodged from his hold and the Doctor was forced under again. He was tossed and turned in the raging water like a rag doll and hit several protruding objects that were in the way. Every time he tried to resurface, another wave would come crashing over his head, driving him down even further than before.

He was losing air fast and a foggy blackness began to crowd the corners of his vision. His legs and arms had lost feeling and his limp form was now rolling under the current, strength fading out. _No, no! _He struggled to think straight as his lungs screamed for air. _I've got to find Clara. _He repeated the sentence over and over in his mind as he was swept through the tumultuous water that now seemed less like a raging current, but more like a lulling stream that gently brought him along as his consciousness began fading out.

The Doctor was dimly aware in his dreamy state of something pulling on him and tugging his coat. _Go away. _He thought sluggishly. _Let me sleep. _But the pulling persisted and he was soon roughly shoved to the side of the water where rocks stood and branches grew in the way of the current. It didn't take too long however for him to hit a thick, stationary root that stopped him in the rushing water that ran around him.

The Doctor remained relatively unaware as the unknown force dragged him (with apparent struggle) out of the water and onto the dry land where he lay unmoving.

The Doctor, just barely conscious at this point, felt faint taps on his chest and face. He immediately dismissed them but was soon startled into painful reality when something bit him in the leg, burning sensations erupting from the area.

The Doctor shot up in shock and his lungs suddenly kicked into gear. He fell back down and coughed up water as clean, beautiful air was finally taken in. The fog was lifted from his sight and he saw tall spruce trees towering above him and a blue sky overhead dotted with puffy, white clouds.

Once his coughing fit ended, The Doctor groaned and rolled over onto his other side, dripping, soaked, and cold to the bone. A rushing river played out before him with its dull roar filling his ears.

He breathed out a sigh of relief and looked around curiously for his rescuer.

A faint scuttle was heard behind him and he slowly turned around to see Fuzzy shivering and soaked as the tired spider chirped happily in relief that the Doctor was revived and well.

"I suppose you don't have to say 'I told you so'." The Doctor said in a joking matter. Fuzzy just rolled his eyes and shook droplets of water out of his face.

"Now where are we?" The Doctor sat up and inspected the area around them.

Snow layered the ground around them, an untouched blanket of glistening white in the weak sunlight that gently rolled over the hills that were crowded with spruce trees going on for miles in every direction.

The Doctor's breath billowed in the icy air as he took in the calm scenery, but was ripped away from the peace as shooting, fiery pains exploded in another wave of agony. He shouted briefly in pain and clutched his bitten leg, shooting a glare at Fuzzy. He said in between gasps of pain, "You know…you didn't have…to do that."

Fuzzy just narrowed his eyes in confusion and looked from the icy river to their side, to the soaking wet Doctor, and back down to the ground in sadness.

The Doctor softened a bit and replied, "Sorry, you _did_ save my life back there. Thanks." At this, Fuzzy hopped in apparent joy and snuggled up to the time traveler, (much to the Doctor's slight discomfort, but accepted it nonetheless.) making some sort of a purring noise.

The Doctor, doing his best to ignore the pain in his leg, continued. "We're going to need to find shelter soon, not that it's about to get dark, but the poison will run its course and I won't have much more strength by then."

The air was split by the distant sounds of howling beyond the trees, letting the wet travelers know that they were not alone in the cold.

The Doctor wasted no more time as he reluctantly got up, motioning for Fuzzy to walk with him, saying, "Come on. If we're going to get to Clara in one piece, I suggest we get a move-on." He whipped out a wet sonic screwdriver and activated it, guiding him ahead in the direction of a denser part of the forest.

Following the device, he managed to walk a few yards forward with the cave spider lingering behind until the Doctor began to lose feeling in his arms and legs. _Oh, here we go. _The sickening tingling in his limbs brought back unwanted memories of the cave-spider attack before. His breathing became labored and his feet began to drag noisily through the snow, as every step became a challenge.

"Fuzzy," He gasped, "I think-I think I'll need some- some help from now- on." The poison was beginning to make his head swim. All he knew was that he had to get somewhere safe and his only protection was a tiny cave spider that might- or might not- leave him out in the cold where he'd likely freeze to death or get killed by other hostiles.

_It'll have to do..._ He thought before his foot tripped over something hidden in the snow, sending him to the ground where he laid in confusion and dizziness. The Doctor lifted his face inches above the white powder to see a blurry outline of Fuzzy looking at him curiously.

The cave-spider cocked his head to the side and poked the Doctor's head as it lolled back into the snow. The drugged Time Lord groaned and simply lay in the cold, unable to move or think straight.

Fuzzy then turned from him, and began digging a good-sized hole inches from where the Doctor's limp form lay. Once he was done, the spider managed to drag the time-travelers body into the small pit. Scuttling out of it, Fuzzy began laying multiple, small, pine branches over the mouth of the hole until it was satisfactorily covered, and then began to brush handfuls of snow onto it.

Once his work was finally done, Fuzzy sat at the base of the covered hole and waited patiently for when the Doctor would awaken.

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><p><strong>Yay! The wait is over! Thank you all so very very much for sticking with the story as it went through this little speed bump. Let me know what you thought about the chapter and your suspicions for future events as the plot progresses! Till next week!<strong>


	11. Chapter 11

**Hey guys! Here's the next chapter!**

The Doctor opened his eyes to meet total darkness. Crawling out of his comatose state, he gingerly sat up and felt earth scrape the surface of his head. Bits of dusty soil fell from the dirt ceiling and showered him, coating his clothes and face in a fine layer of dust.

"Ah, ok then…" His voice sounded scratchy and unused, as if one would wake up in the mornings.

He was relieved that the pain was gone from his leg, but as he looked around his small space, he became concerned for how he was supposed to get out.

The walls of earth surrounding and beneath him were as hard as stone and the ceiling was delicately put together with variations of twigs and small stones embedded in the soft dirt. Someone had buried him alive. And the Doctor knew exactly who could have possibly done it.

"Fuzzy." He groaned. There was no time for him to sit around. He was awake and ready to find Clara, but if he tried to dig his way out, the hole would cave in and collapse on him.

_A chance I'll just have to take. _He'd run out of air in the enclosed space in no time if he stayed any longer. So not wasting another second, he quickly dug out a chunk of the dirt above him and hastily began scrambling to the surface as the structure fell apart. For a second, all he could see was earth falling around him. He sucked in a quick breath before more soil showered over him and temporarily blinded the Time Lord. A few frightening seconds later, he burst through a pile of snow, finally at the surface.

The cold air hit him with the force of a freight train and he gasped in shock. In his hesitation, the ground around him had fallen and rested up to his torso.

He coughed on the dust that was settling after the massive cave-in and managed call out, "Fuzzy?" He looked around and blinked in the bright sunlight, his eyes adjusting to the morning light. Fuzzy suddenly poked his head out from behind a spruce tree near the hole and scuttled over to the Doctor, trilling in happiness.

The Doctor breathed out a sigh in relief, "Thank god you're still here. Help me out of this will you?" He started moving the earth around him to the sides with his free hands while the cave spider helped dig him out. Within seconds, the Doctor managed to climb out of the hole and stand up out of the pit.

"Thanks." He breathed out, "Now to find Clara, figure out what happened to the Tardis, and leave the game! How bad can it be?"

He searched his pockets and felt relief wash over him as he pulled out his unscathed screwdriver. Activating it, he said, "Now let's see, where are you Clara?" It pointed him in the direction of a denser part of the forest that was still shrouded in mist from the early morning.

Looking at the readings, he smiled and stated, "Not that far from here! Just a few more miles, but closer nonetheless. Come on Fuzzy," He looked down at the spider excitedly, "we're almost there."

Pocketing the screwdriver, he strode off in the general direction the sonic had pointed out to him with Fuzzy scuttling beside him.

* * *

><p>The two had been walking amongst the dark forest for the past three hours.<p>

The trees stretched high into the sky, their top branches coming together and blocking out the majority of the daylight that tried to reach the forest floor. The only sound emanating from the woods was the loud crunching of the snow beneath the travelers' feet. The air smelled of crisp pine and the cold felt sharper in the deep shade of the forest.

The terrain soon turned into an upward slope that went on for seemingly forever. The Doctor panted heavily as he strode on, the beginnings of exhaustion creeping into his legs. Even Fuzzy had an air of fatigue around his usual enthusiastic complexion. There was no sign that the ascending hill was going to level out soon and the trees were growing closer together until the travelers had to weave themselves in and out of their designated path.

The underbrush rustled every so often, making the Doctor and Fuzzy snap to attention at the possibility of a hostile. But the two fell back into a tired step once again as they realized it was just a faint breeze that disturbed their otherwise silent hike.

_It is a little odd, isn't it…? _The Doctor thought as he made sure not to trip over a fallen branch that blocked the way. _Not a single sound except for us. _The forest was just so dead silent. Weren't there supposed to be birds chattering away in the treetops? Maybe even some faint scuffling in the distance where wild game roamed in search of food? Yet there was nothing. Absolutely _nothing_.

He almost found this a bit irksome as he trudged along. There weren't even any monsters popping up and attacking them in the dim light of the snowy forest. The howls of wolves from earlier weren't even present. _Come on, _he questioned, _why not kill us now? We're sitting ducks here in the dark. _Sure, it was a bit sinister to think like that, but he had a point... It was practically as dark as the night here in the misty forest. Perfect for any looters or mobs that wanted to take a piece out of you.

Sighing, he decided to come to a halt next to one of the tall pines and lean against it. "Why don't we stop here for a moment?" He said, "Let's just take a small break and get our bearings?"

Fuzzy seemed overjoyed at his words and simply collapsed in a heap of bluish fur, relaxing on the snowy ground.

While they rested, the Doctor decided to take this opportunity to search through his supplies. Other than his screwdriver, he had a very damaged pickaxe and a loaf of bread left. Everything else he had earlier was used already, was simply lost to the spider attack, and/or tossed with him in the river.

Sure, he could survive a little longer without food or water, but there was no guarantee that he could make it through another couple of nights even without the threat of monsters.

He stole a quick glance at the tired cave spider that was now huddled over a twig, nibbling idly at it.

Realizing that the spider probably couldn't go as long without food as he could, the Doctor became a little uneasy. _Maybe bringing a seemingly harmless and very hungry cave spider along was not the best decision… _There wasn't much he could do about it now though. If he just abandoned it, then he'd be breaking his promise to the spider and no doubt Fuzzy would just kill him then and there. If he waited any longer and no promise of food was present, the cave spider might get irritated and start considering the Doctor as a promising choice. And if danger were to strike, who's to say that Fuzzy wouldn't just strike him down at that given moment?

It didn't help that the time traveler was virtually defenseless either. If anything were to happen, all he'd have was a screwdriver, an axe that would likely break on impact, and his words. Unfortunately it seemed that the world he was in didn't really rely on the breath of a dead man.

An arrow shot through the brush ahead and the air was pierced with a menacing screech. The Doctor whipped around to see the arrow protruding from Fuzzy's side; blackish-crimson beginning to ooze from the wound. In a flash of rage, the cave spider went ballistic.

Fuzzy skittered this way and that, dodging more shots that were being fired, making his way to their attacker's hiding place. Hoots and hollers were heard further up the slope, indicating that the Time Lord and the injured spider were vastly outnumbered.

"Fuzzy, wait!" The Doctor shouted. But his words didn't seem to register in the cave spider's mind. Fuzzy just continued charging and dodging until he finally dove through some shrubbery, reappearing out the other end on top of another player who screamed under the mob.

The Doctor scrambled over towards Fuzzy, ducking and diving through the rain of arrows that continued to fall. The closer he got to the brawl, the more he started to consider the idea of making a run for it in the other direction.

The cave spider issued a guttural roar from his tiny jaws that sent chills down the Doctor's spine. Fuzzy's pincers were foaming a sickly-yellow color that dripped onto the gamer's chest and face as he struggled.

The player who had fallen prey to the blue-haired monster held the ravenous cave spider's chomping pincers a dangerous few inches from his face. But Fuzzy's hairy legs were beginning to unfold the gamer's grasp from his jaws.

A few heart-stopping seconds went by as the Doctor watched on with brief uncertainty. Everything seemed to be playing around him in slow motion. A band of other gamers were rushing down the hillside shouting commands and attempting to aid their fallen comrade; Fuzzy was getting more and more agitated and was about to successfully rip himself out of his victim's grip; and a pack of dogs with collars were advancing in his direction, their teeth glistening and fury dancing in their eyes.

The Doctor never considered that dogs would be able to see him before, most likely because they were domesticated; then again, they were technically a mob too. He knew one thing for sure though: he'd be discovered and ripped to shreds.

He was at a dead-end. If he went to rescue the fallen player from Fuzzy's rage, the gamers would then see him, and most-likely, kill him on the spot. If he stayed where he was or decided to make a run for it, the dogs would catch him. If he climbed one of the trees, the gamers would find him _with_ their dogs and shoot him down. He certainly couldn't outrun hunting dogs either.

There was no way out.

_Still, _He rationalized;_ running's a better option at this point_. Adrenaline shot through him in an instant of fear as the barking dogs quickly shortened the distance between their designated prey and their masters. He took off running in the woods to his right and made his way through the dense trees. He heard indignant shouts and howls of laughter behind him and stole a quick glance back to see his pursuers. The group of players had left their friend at the mercy of the cave spider and was now following their dogs that chased him fervently.

The dogs at this point were now a few feet from his heels. He could almost feel their hot breath against his legs that were powering through the snow. He wouldn't last another minute. The dogs were smaller, faster, and much more lithe as they maneuvered through the trees with relative ease.

The Doctor put on another desperate burst of speed and felt his hearts pounding frantically in his chest. His legs were moving so fast that they didn't even register in his mind; he was so focused on not running into a tree or tripping in the snow. He could still hear the vicious snaps of the dogs' jaws at his heels and their ragged breath. He could still hear their owners calling out and taunting behind him as they matched their pets' pace.

_I can't keep up much longer. _He thought with dread. His chest was beginning to burn icily as each breath he took in became a struggle. He knew that if he changed direction suddenly, then he'd be caught in an instant.

He had hardly noticed the trees beginning to thin out in the chase and soon saw in horror that the land stopped at a ledge a few yards ahead of him. There was a mass of land on the other side, but the distance between the two cliffs was impossibly long for him to simply jump across.

He didn't really have a choice. It was either falling to his death or being torn to pieces by the hunters. Deciding that the formal had a better chance of survival, he sped to the edge and leapt as far as he could to the other side. A few dogs attempted the jump behind him while the others skidded to a halt at the cliff, watching on and barking madly with their owners.

The Doctor's triumphant jump came up short by a few inches and he soon began falling towards the ground far below. He flailed his arms about desperately to find a hold in the cliff-side, but was running out of time as his precious seconds flew by in his last attempt to save himself. _I'm not going to make it._ He thought in horror as sections of rock rose rapidly above him as he plunged toward the ground.

Then, his salvation came to him in the form of a thick tree root that was protruding from the wall. His hands caught hold of it and stopped his fall with a painful jolt, yet surprisingly his strong grip held firm to the stationary root. It held his weight but swayed slightly as he hung there.

Suddenly, much to his shock, one of the dogs that followed him off the cliff's edge managed to grab the Doctor's right ankle in its attempt to save itself _and_ catch its prey.

The Doctor shouted in pain, but held on to the root more tightly than before. His vision became obscured for a brief moment as every sensation was filled with agony. A loud, audible 'crack' filled his ears as his ankle broke from the weight of its captor and the massive bite.

He was dimly aware of the hunters' voices jeering at him from above as they watched the dilemma with exquisite joy and entertainment.

Another cry of pain escaped him as the dog's grip tightened on the wound, seemingly losing its grip. The dog's weight was becoming more unbearable with each heart-wrenching second; the Doctor's own grip on the branch beginning to loosen each time the hound arranged its hold.

Closing his eyes, the Doctor only focused on keeping his hold on the root that was now beginning to sag from the extra weight. He could feel it sinking lower and lower as the earth supporting it was crumbling away. It creaked and groaned every time the mutt moved or the Doctor rearranged his hold.

Then all of a sudden, the heavy weight was lifted from the Time Lord's ankle with a yelp. The Doctor opened his eyes and looked down to see the hunting dog falling to the ground with an arrow sticking out of its neck. He then looked up to see a face peer down at him from the top of the cliff and a rope lowered to his position.

Without hesitating another second, he grabbed it and allowed himself to be pulled up by the player. At this point, he didn't really care if the player was only sparing him to kill him at the top or if he really _was_ rescuing him.

While being pulled up, he saw the hunters on the other side of the gap scowl and shout a few insults at his rescuer. Then, they simply turned and sulked off with their remaining dogs trailing behind them.

Finally nearing the top, the Doctor started to feebly climb up the rest of the way with his legs whilst being pulled. In a few more seconds he had finally reached the snowy edge and collapsed on the solid ground, panting heavily and simply staring up at the blue sky.

"What in the world do you think you're doing?"

A smile came to the Doctor's features as relief washed over him at the sound of the voice.

"I was hoping you'd come back Dragon reborn9." He painfully laughed out.

"Here, take some of this."

The Doctor reluctantly sat up and saw the friendly gamer handing him some food. He took it gratefully began eating it as he caught his breath and rested. "Who were those people?" He breathed out.

Dragon reborn9 simply stared at him curiously and answered as he noticed the Doctor's wounded ankle that was still bleeding. "That was the Wither Clan. It's a small faction that devotes itself to hunting monsters and player-versus-player combat in this server. They're pretty nasty. I used to be in it a long time ago, but I got tired of it. Now they just hate me." He shrugged nonchalantly, kneeling down by the Doctor, unwrapping a long section of cloth from his inventory, and began wrapping it around the Doctor's ankle tightly.

Stifling a hiss of pain, the Doctor asked, bewildered, "Why are you helping me?"

Dragon didn't look up from his work as he answered, "I think we've established a small friendship, haven't we? I'd hate to see you die at the hands of my previous club." He hesitated in his work and looked at the Doctor, "By the way, where's Clara?" He looked worried as the idea that the clan killed her came to his mind's eye. He enjoyed her company and hoped that she wasn't lost.

The Doctor saw his concerned expression and stated reassuringly, "She's alive, don't worry. I'm going to find her. We got separated in the caves after we were attacked by cave spiders and now she's somewhere in that direction." He moved his head, gesturing in the general direction of the hunters' location.

"Are you serious?" Dragon reborn9 looked across the gap between the cliffs and into the trees beyond, "She's nearby the clan camps?"

"Like I said, she's alive. Last time we spoke, she was actually underground. I'd know if she were dead right now." Dragon reborn9 nodded in satisfaction of the answer and leaned back, observing his handiwork when he was finished. The Doctor then began piling snow over some of his other wounds, both cleaning and preventing swelling at the same time with the cold.

There was a strained silence between the two. Dragon reborn9 lost in thought and the Doctor tending to the rest of his injuries.

Dragon watched on as this strange player took care of himself and rested with a sigh in the cold snow. This 'Doctor' didn't really add up. You wouldn't usually hear a gamer exclaim anything in such pain unless if they were acting or simply trying to _put_ themselves into the game with a fiery passion. But the Doctor didn't know that he was there on the ledge, so why would he be screaming in such realistic agony if no one were around? Why did he put so much effort into making all of this seem so _real_? There wasn't an audience and the exclamations of relief, the panting, and the shouts were far too genuine to be overlooked. This man was a mystery wrapped in an enigma, and Dragon reborn9 had the sudden, deep intent to find out who this Doctor really was.

Taking in a breath, he broke the silence and faced the Doctor who now seemed much better. "You're going to need help finding Clara." It wasn't a question. He was going to follow this man whether he wanted his help or not.

The Doctor simply nodded in response and smiled at him, saying, "I really could use your help. It's not going to be easy."

"Easy is boring. I'd be disappointed if it was." Dragon reborn9 smirked and got up. Pulling out blocks of wood, he began building a small structure around them with a low roof. "It's going to be dark soon and I'm in no mood to deal with mobs right now. You just sit there and I'll finish this. We can stay here for tonight."

The Doctor leaned back against one of the wooden walls and closed his eyes, sighing in relief.

Dragon reborn9 took note of this and wearily continued his building with suspicious thoughts in mind of what was to come.


	12. Chapter 12

**Hello! It's me again. So yeah. Computer died. Totally. And. Completely. Died. Like blue screen of death meets an atomic bomb, dead. So I lost EVERYTHING! *Flips table* I had to rewrite the rest of the story. *sigh* I'm sorry this had to happen, but I was determined to finish what I'd started. So I promise that I haven't abandoned you guys. *nervously laughs* Anyway, please R&R to let me know you readers are still out there for this fic. That would be nice. **

Stepping outside of the temporary shelter Dragon reborn9 had built, the Doctor stopped for a moment to relish the cool morning breeze that ruffled his hair and brought life back to his tired limbs. Although sleep was impossible in the virtual reality, he had managed to doze in the warm safety of the small structure over the course of an otherwise peaceful night.

He surveyed his surroundings with rising hope in the new day. Standing a few meters away from the cliff's edge where he had once hung for his life not a few hours ago, he looked out onto the horizon to see the morning sunlight dapple the valley below. The dew-covered landscape stretched on for miles and soon gave way to lush forests that teemed with life that greeted the new dawn. Beyond that, sun-kissed mountains touched the sky with their peaks and seemed to loom over the valley as would a protective mother over her child.

Then, he turned his attention to the other side of the cliff where the jagged gap separated the two sides of the mountain where he had been suspended from the previous day. Looking into the dark depths of the snow-covered pine forest ahead, he inwardly shivered as flashes of snarling hunting dogs and rabid cave spiders haunted his mind's eye for a brief second.

Shaking out of his stupor, the Doctor took a step forward and gingerly tested his injured ankle on the snowy ground. It held well, but couldn't withstand a lot of weight if he put more pressure on it. This came as a pleasant surprise for him since it had been mangled and broken just yesterday. _Never have I been more thankful for my physiology than today_. He thought with a smile playing on his features.

Testing the wounded ankle again, he limped lightly over to the edge of the cliff and brought out his screwdriver, activating it and letting it lead his arm in the direction of the opposite side of the gap once again. Relief briefly washed over him. Clara was still underground and alive in the same location as last time, but a heavy feeling of concern set itself in his gut. Why wouldn't she have contacted him by now? Wouldn't she have started off in a general direction to find him at this point? And why hasn't she at least moved to a safer location than a dark cave?

These questions floated to the forefront of his mind as he put away the sonic device. Turning his attention back towards the shelter, he called out to his ally-player, "Oy! Rise and shine! Come on, we better get a move-on if we want to find Clara."

A few seconds later, Dragon reborn9 emerged from the small building. At first, his voice seemed further away, but it quickly changed to a normal volume as he spoke. "Alright, alright, I'm here. I was grabbing a few more snacks before getting back online. If this little trip is going to take any longer than two hours, I'm going to need the provisions. So!" The gamer clapped his hands together and moved toward the Doctor. "Do you have everything you need?"

The question brought the Doctor's attention to his situation at hand, catching him slightly off guard. He'd been concentrating so much on finding Clara safe and sound that he didn't even stop to think about how he was going to do it once he got there. The Time Lord and the PC gamer would most likely be fighting monsters and ducking players this whole time, not to mention, if Clara was underground they'd need some digging supplies.

"Uh…no. Not really." He answered, "I don't really have anything, unless you count a flimsy pickaxe and some rations."

Dragon reborn9 just chuckled and shook his head, saying, "Oh, will I ever stop giving you my supplies?"

"Maybe one day." The Doctor answered back jokingly.

"Here." The gamer stepped up and began giving him standard supplies including a new axe, more food, torches, coal, an iron helmet, and glass bottle containing a luminescent purple solution.

The Doctor eyed it curiously and asked, "What's this?"

"Potion of regeneration." Dragon said. Noticing the Doctor's eyebrows shoot up at its mention, he continued, "It rejuvenates your health to its maximum level and sustains it for a few seconds. Do not use it unless extremely necessary. It's very hard to craft."

The Doctor gave an affirmative nod and placed it gingerly in his jacket's pocket. Quickly he reviewed his items and stopped short when he noticed something was missing. Dragon reborn9 seemed to have noticed the curious look on the Doctor's face and suddenly started, "Oh! I almost forgot, your sword. I, uh…was saving this for a special occasion, but uh…I suppose this would be quite the occasion."

Not hesitating for another second, Dragon reborn9 pulled out a sleek, sharp, and beautiful blade that held a light blue luster to it. The sword's even blade was caught in the morning light, dappling the snowy ground below it with bright blue specks.

Dragon handed it over to the Doctor who carefully took it from the gamer's cautious hands. The bright sword fit well in the Time Lord's hands and was lightweight despite its large appearance.

"It's a diamond sword." Dragon reborn said, "I crafted it myself but, I never used it. Something about being a pvper and showing off expensive and elite weaponry doesn't fit right with my standards."

The Doctor looked over the magnificent blade and looked back up at the gamer who held a small smile that reached his eyes. "I can't take this from you." He offered the rarity back, but Dragon reborn just simply shook his head. "No, it's fine. Better in your hands than mine." The Doctor nodded and put it away in his inventory.

An awkward silence enveloped the two for a few seconds until Dragon abruptly patted the Doctor's back, saying, "If you lose it, I'm so going to kill you."

The time traveler laughed, "I know! I'll be careful."

"Good." Dragon started, "So, do you know where Clara is?"

"Yes!" The Doctor affirmed and started pacing along the perimeter of their shelter, taking in the details of the land surrounding the cliff as he continued, "She's underground in a small pocket-cave. Last time we spoke she said she could hear water and the cave had a high ceiling."

"That doesn't tell us much. Has she been in contact since then?" Dragon reborn9 crossed his arms and watched the Doctor walk around.

"No," He responded, "not for a while now. But I know she's underground in that direction." He pointed to the opposite side of the cliff where the dark pine forests crowded the skyline and where no doubt the Wither Clan were hiding.

Dragon reborn9 looked out in that direction and any sign of confidence he had on his features visibly deflated. "Are you kidding me? We have to go back there?"

"We could be a little sneakier than we were last time. All I'm asking is to go across, find where to dig over there, and then we'll be on our merry way to finding Clara!"

"Fat chance." Dragon reborn9 stepped over to the Doctor, stopping him in his tracks, "The Wither Clan is an elitist group that takes their game styles very seriously." Dragon reborn led the Doctor over to the drop-off that separated the two from the tyrannous faction and continued. "I was a part of their organization, remember?"

"That's the point," The Doctor said, "You know the people, their tactics, the ins-and-outs, and everything else that goes with it! You could sneak us in there."

The player shook his head. "It's not that easy. The faction has gained more members since I left and they've started organizing border patrols ranging from the rim of their HQ, all the way down the Western mountainside. Plus, the landscape is crawling with recruits on hunting trips. There's no way to sneak in without being seen-"

"Now hold on," The traveler stopped Dragon short, "I was walking right up the mountain and I didn't see a single thing up until I was nearing the peak."

Dragon reborn9 rolled his eyes and stated as if it were common knowledge, "Duh, they don't patrol on the ground the whole time. They've set up interlocking tree paths that connect most of the foliage together up high, setting an easier way to travel the perimeter for security. That's why it's so dark in there. When they see an intruder, they alert the base and send a small ground squad to take them out."

"Ok…" The Doctor nodded and decided that it wouldn't be an argument worth winning. If Dragon reborn9 knew what he was doing and how they could safely get to Clara, he was open to other suggestions. "So our other options are to go around the mountain to the East side and start digging there, or we climb down the gap and dig straight into the side of the mountain." The time traveler offered. "Either way, she's still somewhere underground in the general area of the mountain."

Dragon reborn stroked his chin and looked out on the East side and then down in the ravine as he contemplated the options. After some further thought, he said, "If we go around we'd be adding more time, if we went down into the ravine, we'd be surrounded by monsters the whole way, but it'd be quicker. Now I'm always okay with taking the long route, but I know you want to get to her as fast as you can."

The Doctor remained pensive as he let the gamer's words sink in. Of course the longer way sounded better, but it would take longer. He wasn't entirely comfortable with the notion that Clara would be alone in the depths of a cavern for an additional few days. Plus, looking down the mountain to the East, they'd have to weave through a dense forest, cross a large river, and eventually trudge through a marsh before arriving at the base of the mountain. From there they'd have to pinpoint Clara's exact location in the mountain and dig.

However, if they just went through the ravine…. Sure, it would be dark and infested with mobs, but they would already be half-way there. Once at the bottom, all they would need to do is dig straight ahead and then determine whether to go deeper or closer to the surface to find her. Then again, he'd have to be on his guard every step of the way. There would be very little time for rest, and he'd be spending the majority of the time digging, not to mention fighting off hostiles almost every five minutes.

_So it all boils down to what's safer and what's faster. Serves me right._ He took one last glance at the East side and at the ravine, making his final decision.

"Alright," He said, "We'll go through the ravine."

* * *

><p>Clara began her painfully slow crawl back to consciousness as she was met with a horrible pounding in her head. She opened her bleary eyes, waiting for her vision to stop swimming. After a few seconds, her sight sharpened and she was immediately met with cold iron bars letting in sickly red light from the cavern outside. Regretting waking up, she shut her eyes once more, willing this to be a dream; but opened them to find that nothing had changed, much to her disappointment.<p>

Clara groaned and sat up from an unforgiving rough floor, surveying her non-glamorous surroundings. It wasn't unlike anything one would imagine for a poor jail cell. The walls, low ceiling, and ground were made of a black and grey speckled coarse rock that was only stopped by the iron bars leading out to the cave. Turning from the sealed entrance, the back wall just a few inches away held a small bed that sat next to a Redstone lamp on the floor. It really wasn't much to look at, but it was certainly better than nothing.

She massaged her temples and closed her eyes, willing her mind to think back to how she ended up here in the first place. Clara was well aware of the spider attack and the formless voice that spoke to her upon arrival but…what did it say? She concentrated and thought as far back as possible, yet she couldn't remember what words were exchanged. However, a sinking feeling told her to not trust whoever was keeping her here (no doubt the face behind the voice) and to watch out for danger despite her so-far harmless incapacitation.

Standing up and stretching to where her fingertips grazed the ceiling, she stepped over to the bars and looked out into the cavern. It didn't look any different than when she had arrived there in the first place, except for two Redstone torches that hung on the opposite ends of the cell. With the low lighting the torches provided, she could only see a few feet from where she stood by the bars.

Clara's thoughts traveled back to her captor. Peering into the darkness ahead of the sick light, she saw no sign of the mysterious form that currently held her prisoner. Taking the chance while she had it, Clara moved to the bed and sat down. She had no intention of resting despite her current need for it, all she could think of was finding the Doctor. She had no chance of escape in the enclosed pen, but she would still be able to contact him from here just as well as anywhere else, right?

Closing her eyes, she concentrated on how the process worked from her last experience. Last time, the Doctor had established communication first, but how hard could it be to do it vice-versa? All she had to do was think. Hard. Keeping her mind solely focused on the Doctor, she began her search.

"I wouldn't try that if I were you."

Clara nearly jumped out of her skin in a startle and bumped her head on the low ceiling, earning her a brand-new headache and a starry vision. Bighting back some choice curses, she turned her attention to the bone-chillingly familiar voice that sat right next to her on the bed.

In a brief moment of pure interest and subtle surprise, Clara took in the appearance of her kidnapper. The man was hunched over with his head hung low and his hands folded in his lap in such a position that made him look more like he was the one in solitary confinement and not her. The mysterious figure wore a blue-green shirt with very dark purple pants and a pair of black shoes to match. The ragged clothes with his messy brown hair and pitiful posture to match, actually sent a wave of mixed feelings to Clara as she watched on (however still on guard).

The image of her captor in Clara's mind was quite different than what sat decrepit beside her. She had envisioned a truly evil being who would rule over her imprisoned life with an iron fist for the rest of her life in the virtual reality. However, with the face behind the voice revealed, she couldn't help but think of her adversary as more of a…let-down.

Suppressing any remaining fear of the man beside her, Clara summoned up the courage to ask simply, "Why can't I talk to him?"

With his head still hung low, the man answered quietly yet somewhat friendly, "You don't know the exact reason why you're here. I do. If you want your friend to remain safe and well-informed, you can leave the talking to me. I don't doubt that you know a lot, but, if you explained your situation to him now, it would seem more like you would be in terrible danger."

Clara let the words hang in the air, letting her mind absorb them. "Well, I can't just leave him alone. I'd like to tell him where I am at least…which is…?"

She looked down on the contorted form beside her and almost swore she saw shades of pink flush his ears that poked out of his messy hair. He seemed to duck a little lower as he answered, "I've already taken care of notifying him. In fact, he's on his way. Plus, you're kind of…in my home."

The atmosphere suddenly shifted from a threatening cell to a casual park bench as Clara asked in suppressed surprise, "I beg your pardon?"

"Please don't be mad." Said the hunched figure, as if feeling her patronizing glare boring into his skull. "I-I saw you, unconscious in the spider den…I couldn't just leave you there. So I picked you up and brought you to the only safe place I know, which is here."

Clara relaxed slightly and inwardly chuckled at the absurdness of her situation. But soon her amusement was snuffed out as she took in the gloomy surroundings once again. "This, is your home?"

"It's a long story…I don't like talking about it."

An awkward silence enveloped the room once again. However, it didn't take too long for Clara's mind to wander back to the Doctor. Taking another shot, she shattered the silence with a quiet question. "So…when can I see my friend? He will be here soon, right?"

The figure's appearance visibly brightened with the new subject and he answered enthusiastically, "Yes! But it might take a few days. It's a bit of a trek from where he is."

"And how do you know who I'm referring to?"

The figure sheepishly lowered himself further and his ears turned a violent shade of pink. "You kind of mumbled a lot of stuff when I carried you here. But you can trust me," The figure's posture straightened and Clara was met with the handsome face of a man with deep brown eyes, "I promise no harm will come to him. I'm keeping him safe. As long as you stay here, and I'm messaging him, he'll be here sooner than you think." He flashed a warm smile that met his eyes as he looked into Clara's features.

Clara was taken aback by the kindness and appeal of her…captor? No, the word didn't feel right in her head anymore. More like, 'host'. A little shy and somewhat sketchy, but Clara felt she wouldn't have to worry so much about her safety to such an extent anymore. But at the back of her mind, tucked deep inside her unconscious thoughts, she caught a brief glimpse of her Doctor beaten, bruised, and in chains, calling out feebly in a crippled heap. But the image was there for less than a second and was nonchalantly waved off as a dream from the past.

Clara smiled back at her host as he got up from the bed and unlocked the bars, letting himself out, and closing the entrance behind him. He looked at Clara and said in a friendly tone, "My name's Steve. What's your name?"

"Clara." She answered back.

"Nice to meet you, Clara." He nodded his head in greeting. "You must be parched. Let me go get you some food and water." He turned to leave, but stopped short and turned back, adding, "By the way, it's best if you stay here. Sorry about the bars, but mobs swarm these parts most times of the day and I'd hate for you to get hurt."

"Thanks." Clara said, watching Steve pull out his sword, walking out into the darkness to fetch her some refreshments.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

The Doctor moved his foothold to a better position in the side of the cliff-face as he and Dragon reborn9 scaled down the side of the mountain that would lead them into the dark abyss that yawned underneath their small forms.

"You suggested this…instead of going around the mountain?" Dragon said hesitantly looking down for a brief dizzying moment, clutching his hold with a white-knuckled grip.

The Doctor didn't answer as he focused on keeping his own grip while climbing down as well as maintaining some rational reasons for why they were free-climbing down into a mob-infested ravine. Admittedly, he did have some regret in not going around the long way to find Clara. Looking back down into the black once more, he was reminded at how safe and secure the other plan was. He wouldn't be risking his life from the get-go like he was doing currently.

He was brought out of his stupor when his foot slipped. The Doctor caught himself and retained balance once more, breathing out a sigh of relief. _There's got to be a better way than this. _His hearts fluttered frantically inside his chest like two canaries trapped inside a cage as he continued to move down from grip to grip. He didn't know any logical reasons for why he was doing this, but some feeling at the back of his mind was screaming at him to take the fastest route to Clara. He feared she'd be in terrible danger if he didn't get there in time. _In time for what, though? _

"Hey Doctor, stop for a second." Dragon reborn9 wrenched the Doctor out of his thoughts as he brought his attention over to the gamer.

"What is it?" The Time Lord stopped his descent and looked over on his left to the player a few feet further down.

"I want to see how much further we have to go; do you have a torch on you?"

The Doctor looked down once again into the pitch black maul of the ravine beneath them and said, "You won't be able to see anything from up here with a small torch."

"I just want to try something." Dragon answered.

Deciding further arguing wouldn't be worth it, the Doctor situated his hold to his right side and brought out an unlit torch to his left hand. "What do you want to do with it?"

"I'm going to light it and toss it down there. I want you to watch for me and tell me how much further we have to go and what to expect, got it?"

"Yeah." He didn't know why Dragon was asking him to do this, but he kept his suspicions at the back of his mind as he carefully tossed the torch to the gamer who managed to catch it and light it on fire. Looking to the Doctor for affirmation, the time traveler nodded his head and the player dropped it, immediately going back to his hold and shutting his eyes tight.

The Doctor watched the little source of light fall deep into the abyss as it lit the rock face briefly in its descent. A few seconds passed before it disappeared into the dark and he heard a distant knock of wood that echoed back to his ears. Running the calculations in his mind he said to Dragon reborn9 who was looking over to him in expectance, "Roughly a hundred thirty-foot drop from here." For a brief moment, he thought he saw a look of surprise pass across the gamer's features, but as soon as it had appeared it was then replaced by a crestfallen state.

"So I suppose a quick jump wouldn't do us any good."

"Not unless if you can survive a fall like that."

"Did you see any ledges or outcrops of rock?"

"No, just sheer cliff face for another thirty feet and then blackness."

Dragon reborn9 swallowed nervously and hesitantly continued climbing down the side. As the two continued their bouldering in silence, the gamer's mind was buzzing with questions. He looked up and over to his right where the strange player was scaling the side with him. Sure the little test he created had a purpose to it. Either this Doctor was fantastic at roleplaying and improvising to make everything feel real, or maybe he really _was_ real. Dragon reborn9 snorted at himself in disbelief, but couldn't shake the feeling that everything the 'player' did was out of complete honesty. Dragon knew just as well as anyone else that dropping a torch from your inventory didn't supply light by itself or any tangible existence in the game except as a packable item. The fact that this gamer could see, or rather feign seeing, light fall from the torch or even 'hear' it land was preposterous.

But Dragon reborn9's thoughts remained pensive as his mind traveled back to the first time he met the Doctor and Clara.

_The Doctor sat back against the wall next to Clara. "What happens if you die in this game?"_

_"You die and then re-spawn back to where you began at the start of the game, unless if you've already set a spawn, then you're left with nothing all over again. But I wouldn't advise you go everywhere dying willy-nilly." The strange player gave a small nod as if a theory was proven correct._

_"Where I come from, we don't kill for no reason." The Doctor said with clearly suppressed anger._

_"Whoever said it was without reason? He could've killed me and taken my stuff if I let my guard down, then where would you be? Call it self-defense. And what do you mean, 'where I come from'?"_

_Clara interjected, "Hold on, if you just said to never trust anyone and never make an alliance, why would you decide to team up with us? Or are you just waiting until we get supplies and then kill us? You just contradicted your own opinions."_

_Dragon whirled around to Clara at the assumption. "I let you poor saps live because I needed something to do."_

_"So that's all we are, entertainment?" The Doctor questioned._

_Dragon reborn waved his arms out in frustration, "No! I was just getting bored online so I just figured I could help you guys get along in the game!"_

_"And then what, kill us?" Clara said._

_"No, I'd just let you leave on your own and then I would go back to my normal routine."_

_"Want me to remind you what you said your 'normal routine' was from earlier?"_

_"Just because I'm a pvper doesn't mean that I can't be a nice guy every now and then."_

_"Oh, so this is you being nice to us!"_

_"Actually, yes it is! Technically, I could run this sword right through you right now couldn't I?"_

_The Doctor stepped in at this and said in a dangerously low voice, "You lay a hand on her, there will be consequences."_

_The achingly familiar shout from the Doctor met Dragon reborn9's ears up on the mountaintop. A small feeling of hope and happiness welled up inside the gamer at the familiarity, but was soon repressed by the sinking feeling of guilt from their last encounter. Dragon reborn hadn't entirely left the game for long until he got back online just a few minutes after logging out. He had continued on in his life and decided to leave the Doctor and Clara on their own, especially after their heated argument. After all, they wouldn't need him after trekking the mineshaft for supplies. So he had continued doing what he'd always done best: wandering. _

_However, now pushing aside the guilt from their last encounter, Dragon reborn dashed to the cliff edge where he heard the source of the cry and stopped short at the sight before him, his breath hitching in his throat. The Wither Clan, jeering and mocking a player below them that seemed to be hanging for dear life by an outcropping. After further speculation, and much to Dragon's horror, it was the Doctor hanging there issuing small and frighteningly genuine shouts of pain. A dog was on the edge with him, attacking the defenseless player as the insults from above continued to rain down from the other side._

_Thinking fast, Dragon reborn9 drew out his bow and fired a direct shot at the dog, launching it off the side of the ledge, and falling into the ravine. Taking a lead, he then stooped down and caught the perplexed gamer in his line of sight and roped him. Walking backwards, Dragon managed to pull the gamer up onto the snow-laden ground where he panted dramatically as if he had just run a marathon. _

_"__What in the world do you think you're doing?" Dragon asked._

Dragon reborn9 suddenly looked back up an over to the Doctor a few feet above him again and thought of opening his mouth to say something, but realized starting a deep and questioning conversation on the side of a cliff face above a mob infested pit was not the best idea.

Suddenly taking in his surroundings, Dragon reborn9 realized it was getting significantly darker. In fact, all he could see of his friend was a faint outline against the deep gray where a blue sky should have been.

"Dragon!" The Doctor shouted above.

The gamer was startled at the sudden shout, but held his grip firm to the cliff-face. "What?"

"If I'm right, which I usually am, we should be pretty close to the bottom of the ravine. About twenty feet more and we're there."

"Great! So we could theoretically jump at this rate and be okay."

"Uh…" The Doctor hesitated, "If you want to. I'll stick with climbing the rest of the way down. But if you do, be sure to keep a lookout."

Dragon reborn nodded and filed down what the Doctor said for later, now was not the time to start inquiring. "Alright, I'm going down." With that, Dragon let go of his hold and fell away from the Doctor's sight into the blackness. A sudden thud was heard and a few seconds later a soft yellow light glowed and Dragon reborn9's voice rung out above, "I made it. It's just a stone floor and no mobs as of yet."

"Alright." The Doctor answered back. Taking advantage of the shorter distance, he began scaling the wall a little more frantically, trying to get to the bottom. Of course this meant less control and a better definition of 'falling safely' which the only safe element to it was that you weren't straight-up falling. Dust fell and pebbles clattered down as the Doctor practically slid down the rock face, earning him a few cuts and bruises, but nothing serious. Once arriving at the bottom, wiping the dust off his jacket and shaking out his stiff limbs, he looked up to see Dragon reborn staring at him in a perplexed manner and clearly at a loss for words.

Deciding to ignore what had just happened, the Doctor pulled out a lit torch and walked ahead, saying, "Well, come on now! We don't have time to lose!"

Regaining his composure, Dragon hurried over to the Doctor's side and began their trek through the dark.

* * *

><p>"So what do you do, Clara?" Steve asked as the two walked along the familiar circumference of the cavern, now taking in the high ceilings, the small waterfall in the corner, and the glistening ores that dotted the terrain.<p>

She shrugged, "Oh, not much. I travel a lot, I sometimes look after my friend's kids, and I make soufflés. Nothing really."

The gamer laughed, "Making soufflés! That's a new one. You say you travel? Where do you go?"

Clara kicked at a pebble idly as she searched for a comprehendible answer, "Oh…just around. It's more like traveling without a purpose. But it's fun…my friend and I, the Doctor, we travel around together."

"More than just a friend I presume?" The player inched an eyebrow with a smirk dancing across his features.

"Oh no, no, no, no. We are definitely not together. We're just friends. So what about you? Do you travel? Got any mates?"

His head snapped over to meet Clara's like a deer caught in the headlights. "Mates...? Oh! You meant friends! Sorry! British lingo, I've got to keep up." He chuckled, "No, not really. But I do travel, often in fact. Although I don't get to see the brightest parts of cultures, I do somewhat enjoy the wandering. But…I've found myself a bit earthbound recently, if you know what I mean."

"Totally grounded?"

Steve sighed, "Yeah. But I've been trying to get out of it. Sometimes I don't even know why I'm still here." They both stopped and looked around the now lit cavern with its jewels and crystalline waterfall. "Maybe I guess it's just sort of…grown on me."

"I can see why you picked here to live, it's gorgeous in the light. Why do you keep it dark?"

"It's how I keep time. When it's night, I shut off the lights. When it's day, I turn them on." He gestured up above their heads to the high ceiling where large growths of Glow stone and Redstone lamps lit the ground beneath their feet in a warm light.

They continued to walk on in silence until Clara broke the quiet, "You know, since it's daytime, couldn't we go out and find the Doctor?"

Steve rolled his eyes and gave a shortened exasperated sigh. "I'd rather we not. Beyond this safe cave is a deadly and monster-ridden cavern that twists and turns itself into a natural labyrinth of tunnels. Trust me, we're doing more good staying here than going off to find him. He'll pinpoint our location and he'll be here faster than if we went off."

"You said earlier that you're protecting him along the way…but you've been here with me the whole time. Shouldn't you be out there."

He smiled and looked to her, saying, "I have many eyes and ears outside these walls. When he hits the dangerous points, I'll be there."

Clara let the words sink in, but couldn't shake the feeling that they didn't hold much truth. The little voice in the back of her mind continued to tell her she shouldn't put any trust in this man but how could she support that? He had treated her with kindness and hospitality. Surely this figure didn't _really_ mean harm to her or the Doctor?

"How do you travel with your friend?" The question brought Clara out of her thoughts and she pondered a not-too-revealing answer. Throughout her journeys she's learned to go with her gut. And that's what she'd continue to do. "We fly most places."

Steve's eyebrows rose into his messy hair. "Expensive habit. Are you two rich?"

Clara laughed, "Oh no, not really."

He held a curious expression and thought aloud, "So you fly, but you're not rich…are you a pilot?"

"No, but…actually the Doctor's a pilot." _Of sorts…. _She wasn't lying. After all they did _fly_, just through time and space. They weren't _rich_, but they traveled a lot. After all, the Doctor _was_ the pilot through their adventures.

"So you're _not_ the pilot." Steve exclaimed in suppressed surprise.

"No. Why? Do I look like one?" She was momentarily confused at his reaction.

The player ducked his head embarrassedly and kicked a small stone aside before answering, "Well, kind of…you're smart, you're pretty, and your head's in the clouds half the time."

Clara gasped in mock pain and playfully shoved him to the side earning a mirthful laugh from Steve.

After that, the two went on to walk around the cave chatting idly until finally coming to the cell that no longer looked the part to Clara. Bidding their farewells, she walked into the room and closed the gate behind her while Steve locked it and said, "I'm not tired yet, I think I'll do some more walking."

"Ok." Clara smiled and went to the bed in the back. "Just be back soon."

Steve smiled and nodded in response. Taking his sword out, he turned his back and shut the lights off before exiting the cave. Walking along the designated path in the tunnels, his demeanor turned sour and his gait became heavy as his face was set into a stern frown and his eyes melted away into a blank white.


	14. Chapter 14

"Come on Doctor, where is she?" Dragon reborn9 said as the two chipped away at a section of the ravine's wall. Putting his pickaxe away, the Time Lord pulled out his screwdriver and ran a final scan over the area. Once he read the results, he replied, "Fifteen feet to your right and roughly…" His face fell as he read the rest of the analysis. "Thirty-four miles ahead." He sighed and leaned against the wall in temporary despair. _This is going to take ages. It'll take _days_ at this rate for us to dig there_. He thought.

The gamer beside him stopped his mining briefly to look at the disheveled and nearly defeated form before him. Feeling a pang of sympathy for the peculiar 'player', Dragon reborn9 walked over and put a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "Hey. We'll get there soon. If she were in danger, we'd know."

The Doctor kept his gaze fixed on the stone floor below and stated more to himself than to the gamer, "The fact that she may not know she's in danger is what worries me."

Having nothing else to say in response, Dragon went back to chipping at the wall, but soon managed to break the quiet tension, saying, "Well moping around won't do us any good. Here, why don't you help me out."

Taking his words to heart (or hearts), the Doctor picked up the axe once again and began digging with a newfound purpose.

A thick silence enveloped the two that was only broken by the clangs of metal on rock and the crumbling away of stone. Dragon reborn9's thoughts were overwhelmed with boiling curiosity for who this player really was. Why was the Doctor so anxious? Could his friend be in any real danger? _Like there is any in Minecraft…_but then again, was it possible that there _was_ something dangerous here?

The Doctor however, was overcome with determination to find Clara alive and well, plus finding a way out of the game. Who possessed the power that brought them to an entirely different reality? And was this power easy to come by here? And who could be with Clara if she's in danger?

Several hours had passed for the Doctor while mere minutes passed for the player who continued to break the walls of earth and stone away with the same strength as when they had started. Beads of sweat drenched the Doctor's face and neck as he continued to work as the lack of airflow and the rising temperature made the area almost suffocatingly stuffy. The tunnel behind them seemed to go on forever and they still had _miles_ to go. No fresh air, no water, and only meager torchlight waited for them on the way to Clara's location. At the very thought, the Doctor's strength weakened almost instantly.

Taking a moment to catch his breath, he stopped berating the wall and looked back once again into the endless tunnel they had dug, the walls lined with torches. His breath caught painfully in his throat however when a flash of movement flitted across his vision. He shifted over to peer around a far corner to eventually see several mobs turn it and come forward. Skeletons clattered and creaked in their gloomy strut, holding battle-worn bows in their flesh-stripped hands; zombies and spiders followed close behind, groaning and snapping at their prey in anticipation of bloodshed; and finally creepers brought up the rear, silent but deadly as almost tangible hate burned in their black eyes. The grouping of monsters were a mere twenty feet away from them as they crept slowly towards the workers.

Pulling out his sword, he warned Dragon reborn to stop. "Get ready." He said.

The gamer turned, seeing the mass of skeletons, zombies, spiders, and creepers. Dragon's eyes widened in surprise and he drew out his bow. Setting up to fire at the first in the group.

"Wait, wait, wait. I have an idea." The Doctor put a wavering hand over the gamer's bow, lowering it as he explained. "If we let them get close enough, we could set off one of the creepers and blow a hole in the wall as well as their defenses."

Dragon quirked an eyebrow and looked at him as if the traveler sprouted another head. "That's suicide, though."

"Maybe not. It would take care of the problem faster and speed up our work if we're careful enough."

"We just free-climbed our way down into a mob infested ravine and dug a tunnel under the Wither Clan's base for the sake of time. Are you really sure you want to throw caution to the wind _again_?"

The time traveler didn't respond as his friend's words sunk in. Had he really lost it? He'd really be willingly to throw himself at a potentially combustible mob for the sake of an additional few minutes to their journey? Was the game really getting to him _this_ quickly? _I'm better than this…right?_

Dragon reborn9 notched the arrow back into his bow, saying, "I'm not going to wait any longer. You want to kill yourself? That's all you." With that, he began firing into the swarm and pulled out his sword, charging into the mass.

"Wait!" The Doctor's warning fell on deaf ears and he ran after the gamer, hesitantly joining in the fray.

The skeletons began firing an assault of arrows on them, the projectile daggers piercing the air. Dragon reborn9 dodged them nimbly and fired a return shot at the closest one, landing his arrow strait into its skull, pushing it back against the tirade in the process, but not killing it. The Doctor seized the opportunity and swung at the monster as it almost instantaneously disintegrated from the blow of his diamond sword. Encouraged by the easy dispatch, he dove at the next one and shoved it into the side of the wall, knocking it off balance. The undead frame snarled in defiance and ducked at the Doctor's next swing and swiped the Time Lord's legs out from under him. Hitting the ground harder than he would've liked on his stomach, the Doctor quickly rolled to the side on his back, and narrowly avoided a deadly strike from the skeleton's bow.

"Doctor!" Dragon's voice rang out and was soon accompanied with the dying growls of a zombie near him.

Taking the cue, the Doctor grappled for his sword while the skeleton advanced on him once more. At the last second, he grasped the diamond blade and swung it at the creature, slicing it cleanly in half and reducing it to dust.

Before having a second to recover, he was violently yanked off of the ground by a cold decaying hand that wrapped around his throat. Being lifted off of his feet, the Doctor choked for air as he quickly looked into a zombie's cold eyes. Not hesitating another second as he felt the blood rushing to his head and his windpipe getting crushed, he thrust his sword into the corpse, sending it backward, thus dropping the Doctor to the ground in a heap. The creature howled in pain with the blade still embedded in its abdomen. The Doctor scrabbled to his feet, gripped the hilt of his sword, and kicked the monster back. The quick motion ripped the weapon out of the zombie and the mob disintegrated upon impact with the ground.

The low sound of a guttural growl alerted the Time Lord's ears behind him and he whipped around to see another undead corpse bringing down a stone sword in a swift striking motion. Quickly, he brought up his sword in a defense, but the zombie stopped abruptly, its black eyes glazing over. A heart-stopping second passed before it fell to the floor with an arrow protruding from its skull, slowly being reduced to dust.

The Doctor looked around in perplexity until his gaze rested on Dragon reborn9 holding his bow once again wearing a friendly smirk as he said, "You got to keep up, come on!" The gamer then turned and knocked a spider off of its feet with a crushing blow from his bow and sunk an arrow into the creature's underbelly, which earned the gamer a loud screech of pain from his adversary.

Taking the encouragement, the Doctor braced himself and set his sights on the next foe that came his way. A creeper was charging towards him and hissed viciously in defiance. "Come on!" The Doctor shouted in an almost taunting fashion. The mob hissed again and came within a few feet before pulsating with an ethereal bright green.

Having dealt with these before, the Doctor had timed the detonation from the previous encounter.

_Five seconds_. He stood his ground, the creeper coming closer with each moment. _Don't move, four seconds…three…two…_. At the last moment he ducked and rolled to the opposite side a few feet from the creature just before the detonation. The explosion decimated a large grouping of skeletons and spiders in the vicinity of the blast, but the shock wave sent him a few feet further than he anticipated and back into the opposite wall. He could painfully feel pebble shrapnel tear into his back and his head suddenly felt like someone had filled it with liquid lead. A loud ringing filled the noise of battle around the Doctor as it and a numbness enveloped his senses.

He lay in a daze facing the brawl before him. Dragon reborn9 was fighting off another zombie with his sword and kicked back at a spider behind him. Finishing off the zombie with a decapitating blow, the gamer noticed another creeper emerge from behind and come forward. Looking back to see the spider launch itself at him again, Dragon ducked and pushed the spider overhead into the creeper just before detonation. Being far enough from the blast zone, Dragon remained mostly unscathed and turned his attention to a large horde of zombies.

_You have to get up_. A little voice at the back of the Doctor's head told him, _Dragon reborn9 may be fast and strong, but he can't face all of the rest alone. You lay here any longer, you'll be dead too. _

Slowly and reluctantly, the Doctor shook his head to clear away the fogginess and propped himself up on his elbow, painfully lifting his form off of the cold earth. One of the zombies coming after Dragon caught sight of the no longer lifeless body and began lumbering after it.

Grabbing for his diamond sword once more, the Doctor limped heavily but determinedly over to the undead. It growled and groaned at his approach and swung a lazy arm at him in an attack. Seizing the opportunity, the Doctor grabbed the arm and pulled the zombie towards him, catching it off balance and thrusting his sword right through it, the corpse going limp before turning to dust.

Feeling like his movement was on automatic, but his mind elsewhere, the Doctor increased his speed and agility in his motions as he used the momentum of attacks to his advantage. Dragon reborn9 was fighting for his life now as the horde closed in on him. The Doctor charged and kicked one of the zombie's legs out from under it and stabbed its falling form in the back, killing it instantly. Using the gained momentum, he threw his body at another decrepit form into the wall, smashing its head in as it crumpled to the floor. The advancing zombies remaining looked slightly more reluctant in their persistent attack.

Taking the advantage of the distraction, Dragon reborn9 stabbed at one with his sword and kicked its sprawling form in the side, sending it into its lumbering comrades. The Doctor slashed at another in a swift and deft stroke, finishing the zombie off before it hit the stone floor. The few remaining fell prey to Dragon's blade and were killed on the spot, falling to the earth in a crumpled heap.

A silence enveloped the battle ground as the final corpses hit the floor and disintegrated. Snapping his gaze back and forth in search for more hostiles, but finding none, the Doctor's new strength and adrenaline immediately drained from his body as fast as it had come. His eyelids grew heavy and he faintly heard the clattering of his sword hit the ground as his legs buckled beneath him and his vision was filled with darkness before he hit the tunnel floor.

* * *

><p>"Doctor, Doctor, wake up." The voice was distant and filled with anxiety. The Doctor groaned as his mind slipped away from the comforting lulls of unconsciousness and became more present in his painful reality. A headache was beginning a slow build to the forefront of his skull where its pounding grew in strength. Reluctantly opening his eyes, the time traveler's vision was blurry and all he could see was the faint outline of Dragon reborn9 and warm torchlight. Letting a few seconds pass for his eyes to focus, he grunted a short response to the player to let him know he was alive.<p>

The gamer breathed out a heavy sigh of relief. "Are you okay?" Shutting his eyes once more to make the headache subside, the Doctor suddenly felt a wave of pain sweep his back and a sharp sting erupt from his ribs. The acute pain sent him sitting up quickly, eyes flying open in the shock which made his head swim and nausea course through his senses. He groaned at the pain and hissed as his side burned angrily in retaliation once more. Looking now at Dragon reborn's puzzled expression, he somewhat regained his composure and leaned back against the wall again.

"How long…was I out." He managed to croak out. His voice sounded terrible, as if he'd spent his time gargling gasoline and smoking three packs of cigarettes a day for the past twenty years.

"About five minutes. Here, don't move."

The Doctor didn't need to be told twice and stayed perfectly still. _Five minutes? _It felt like he'd been unconscious for much longer than that. Maybe the player was answering from his perspective. If he was out for five minutes to the gamer, then he must have been out for at least an hour here in the Doctor's view of time.

The Doctor pushed the thought to the back of his mind and watched Dragon reborn9 pull out a glass bottle filled with a red syrup-y substance with the consistency of coagulating blood. Eyeing it carefully, the Doctor looked back to the gamer, asking, "What's that-?" A coughing fit racked his frame momentarily and he covered his mouth to keep from yelling in pain from ribs. Withdrawing his hand once the fit subsided, he was met with an array crimson specks.

Dragon waited patiently for the Doctor to recover until saying, "It's a potion of healing. Not as good as regeneration, but I think we'll wait until a more desperate time. Here." He handed the Time Lord the bottle who accepted it reluctantly.

Pulling out the cork, a sour smell of rotting fruit and sulfuric fumes assaulted his nose and he recoiled from the stench.

"Oh, don't be such a wuss, just drink it." The gamer said impatiently.

Not taking another moment to examine the beverage any further, the Doctor guzzled the healing tonic and was pleasantly surprised to find that he tasted sweet summer watermelon rather than the bitter liquid form of what he had smelled.

"Not that terrible." He managed to chuckle out without regressing back into another coughing fit. Dragon reborn9 simply smiled and took the empty glass back. "Come on," The player said, getting up and walking over to the tunnel they were digging before the attack. "Let's get back to work."

Before the Doctor could protest, a sudden warm feeling enveloped him as if someone had thrown a big electric blanket over his huddled form. He could feel his broken ribs being restored to their natural states and the faint clicks and patters of pebbles came to his ears behind him. Craning his neck over to his shoulder, he glimpsed the remainder of shrapnel fall out of his back that healed over with new skin. Once some extra minor injuries were healed, the warmth subsided leaving a renewed strength and vigor in the Time Lord.

He got up eagerly from the stone floor and shook out any last traces of fatigue and looked around the tunnel. Catching sight of his diamond sword laying on the ground beside him, he picked it up and sent it back to his inventory. Sighing in short content at the strength and energy in his limbs, he summoned his pickaxe and made his way over to the wall where Dragon reborn was once again chipping away the rock. The two dug in silence for a few minutes, only letting the sound of crumbling rock and clanging of iron fill the tunnel.

Looking out of the corner of his eye, the Doctor noticed that Dragon was stealing glances in his direction over the course of their digging. Finally, after this happened for the eighth time, the Doctor stopped digging abruptly and faced the gamer, saying, "Alright, what is it?"

The player continued hacking away at the wall but said in slight surprise, "What? Nothing."

"You've been looking at me for the past twenty minutes, what's wrong?"

"It's nothing. I was just…concerned, you know? You were offline for minutes and you didn't say a word or anything. Then all of a sudden your back and you sounded shaky. So yeah, you kind of weirded me out."

The Doctor realized at that moment that this wasn't necessarily a true human being he was talking to. This was likely some young adult talking to him through an audio message in a whole other plane of reality. The man of flesh and blood he was talking to now wasn't even technically real, just the result of graphics, programming, and his placement in the game.

An awkward silence that was only broken by Dragon's digging enveloped the moment until the gamer said, "By the way, thanks for helping me back there."

The Doctor smiled, relieved for a break in the tension and a side subject, and said, "You're welcome."

As soon as the words left his lips, Dragon reborn9 had broken away a small section of rock that revealed rays of light that poured out from the opening, momentarily shocking both of them in a stunned silence.

Dragon reborn9 and the Doctor shared a look of surprise before the two started digging fervently around the opening, creating a large whole big enough for them to fit through. Once the dust settled, the Doctor stepped forward into a brightly lit room with clean white quartz tiling and white walls dappled with blocks of emerald and diamond. Small decorative trees were placed in the corners of the room with wooden benches and tables for comfortable decor. But at the center of the room sat an elegant fountain that poured out water into its basin making quaint music with the pitter-patters of trickling water.

Taking only mere seconds for the Doctor to absorb, he rushed over to the fountain and tested the water's drinkability before accepting it gratefully. Behind him he heard Dragon's awed, "Holy crap…" as the gamer entered the area. After taking his drink, the Doctor turned and saw Dragon reborn making his way over to one of the diamond blocks that sat in the frame of the wall. The gamer pulled out his ax and nearly swung at it before the Doctor shouted, "No! I wouldn't touch it. This could be someone's place for all we know."

The gamer paused and turned his attention to the Doctor. "That's what I'm counting on. Technically, it's their fault, they just left this here."

"That's probably why they live nine miles underground, so no one can take it."

"Doc, people live down underground in pvp servers mostly just so they can live filthy rich lives on the survival for a challenge. Trust me, they'll be fine if I take just one part of their wall out."

"You said you don't even like expensive things."

"I said I don't like showing off elitist weaponry. Doesn't mean that I still can't get a ton of extra supplies with this one block." Dragon shrugged with his pickaxe and waited for another objection from the Doctor who just stood there mulling over whether or not the argument would be worth fighting for. Waving the gamer off in resolution, the Doctor said, "Oh fine, but just the one. We don't want any more upset players chasing our tails." Dragon nodded in appreciation and said before going to his prize, "There's a door by the side wall. Why don't you go scout ahead for players or traps and I'll be there in a minute?"

The Doctor rolled his eyes and nodded, walking over to the back of the pristine room and arrived at a birch door, opening it to reveal another enormous chamber. The room had a high cobblestone ceiling, oak wood flooring, and brick walls that were covered with paintings. Tables and chairs crowded the vicinity of the room and booths lined the walls. A bar sat at the far end of the room and held furnaces, chests, and brewing stations ready to be used. The room smelled like a musty, but somewhat home-y, country diner.

The restaurant environment painfully reminded him how long he'd gone without food and his growling stomach was only an irksome reminder._ I might as well look…_He told himself, _I don't know how much longer I'll have to go with the provisions I have and I'd rather not waste them while I have an entire kitchen at my disposal. Besides, I don't think the owner would notice if a few bits of food went missing…. I'll just leave him a note._

He walked over behind the bar and opened one of the chests, his jaw dropping at the sight before him. The chest was, for lack of a better expression, bigger on the inside. The bottom was at least a full arm's length down (with an extra stretch) and the sides were covered in organized shelves, containers, and compartments for adequate food storage. Laughing at his luck, the Doctor rummaged through the box finding all the necessaries as well as cake, pumpkin pie, cookies, golden apples, smoked salmon, and even lamb chops. Choosing a few selections and making sure that there was enough left over, he went over to one of the booths and dug in. Although he would have in better circumstances cooked an elaborate dish using his culinary talents, he was too exhausted and hungry to muster up the inspiration. Besides, he wasn't trying to impress anyone and all he really needed were a few morsels.

A few minutes later, Dragon reborn9 entered the diner and took in the surroundings with newfound glee. Once his gaze landed on the Doctor who sat at one of the tables enjoying a meal, he snorted in short contempt, saying, "Oh yeah, and I could only take one diamond block while you raid the whole kitchen."

"Oy," The time traveler said in a defense, "I didn't take any of the good stuff, just some of the common essentials."

Dragon made his way over to the seat on the opposite side of the table where the Doctor sat. "So I suppose we're going to be justifying all the reasons why we're taking stuff from now on, huh?"

"Probably." As much as he didn't want to admit, he really wanted to take advantage of the new atmosphere. There was no way of telling when they'd get another heaven-sent opportunity like this again. As long as they were careful of not looting the entire place and to leave it as clean as they had found it, they would have less of a risk of being caught by whoever lived here. _Just don't try justifying _everything_ you do. It could lead to a bad habit of taking lots of things you don't need. Plus, you need to get to Clara. _The annoying little voice at the back of his mind reminded him.

Once he had finished eating his fill, he got up and said, "I'm going to explore this place. Just seeing how big it is. If we're lucky, this could just be our ticket to finding Clara."

Dragon looked up, "What makes you say that?"

"This place could be enormous for all we know. If it stretches on in the right direction, we might have less digging to do."

Dragon reborn9 got up at this and said, "Well, I'll come with you. We better stick together if you're suggesting this place is as big as you say. Besides, I might find some more supplies along the way."

The Doctor rolled his eyes, "I thought you were all set."

The gamer shrugged. "Doesn't mean I can't use more. Now come on!" Dragon bounced excitedly on the balls of his feet and rushed toward the door that would lead them deeper into the underground home.

The Doctor paused before going after him, a broad smile coming to his features before he followed the gamer. _Maybe we're catching a big break after all…_ He thought. _Come on, a giant underground sanctuary that could lead us strait to Clara days ahead of schedule? What's not to celebrate a little?_


End file.
